Hispanic community leader raises big bucks in quest to flip Dem-controlled border congressional seat

FIRST ON FOX: A conservative Hispanic community leader aiming to flip a Democrat-held congressional district that sits on the U.S. border with Mexico announced Monday she had raised a massive amount of money to boost her bid.

According to her campaign, former Republican Rep. Mayra Flores, who briefly represented Texas’ 34th Congressional District from 2022-2023, raised over $970,000 from 16,617 unique donors in all 50 states during the 4th quarter of 2023.

“I am overwhelmed and incredibly grateful for the continued outpouring of support for our campaign. Voters across the Rio Grande Valley and the country know that our southern border is a disaster, illegal immigration is out of control, and Democrats like Joe Biden and Vicente Gonzalez are solely to blame,” Flores told Fox News Digital. 

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Then-Rep. Mayra Flores (R-TX) speaks on a panel at the Conservative Political Action Conference held at the Hilton Anatole on August 05, 2022 in Dallas, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

“We are working every day to share our message of securing the border, lowering costs for families, improving education and healthcare, and restoring the greatness of our country — and that’s exactly what I’m going to do on day one when we retake this seat and put the people of TX-34 back in charge,” she added.

Flores was first elected to Congress in June 2022 in a special election to fill a vacant seat, an historic victory in the traditionally Democrat-leaning majority Hispanic region along the southern border.

She was defeated later that year, however, after Texas’ redistricting following the 2020 Census, when she was forced to run against incumbent Democrat Rep. Vicente Gonzalez in the 2022 midterm elections.

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Rep. Vicente González, D-Texas, walks down the House steps after a vote in the Capitol on Thursday, September 15, 2022. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Flores announced her intention to challenge Gonzalez again last June, and stays vocal on issues pertaining to the border crisis and the Hispanic community in South Texas that she says has been left behind by the Democrat Party.

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She faces a number of other candidates in the Republican Primary, including Dr. Laura Cisneros, an oncologist and former Democrat, former congressional candidate Mauro Garza, and Gregory Kunkle, Jr.

Elections analysts largely give Democrats the advantage in the race, but no significant polling has been taken.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.