Monica De La Cruz, the Republican candidate in the redrawn U.S. 15th Congressional District in South Texas, believes the stark difference between her traditional values and those of her progressive Democratic opponent will be what flips the district to red come November.
De La Cruz faces Democrat Michelle Vallejo in a district that’s heavily Hispanic and traditionally votes blue. Both candidates run small businesses in the district, part of which sits along the Mexican border.
That’s where the similarities between the two end.
De La Cruz, from Edinburg, was raised by a single mother and put herself through the University of Texas–San Antonio. She is a pro-life candidate who believes America is a country built on faith and family. She wants a return to former President Donald Trump’s border policies to stop illegal immigration and reverse the Democratic policies she attributes to soaring inflation.
Vallejo, who is from Mission, attended Columbia University and says she wants to make South Texas more “equitable.” Her biography says she comes from a family of farm workers and that she wants to represent the working class. She believes in keeping abortion legal, offering “rights and opportunities” to illegal immigrants, eliminating fossil fuels in favor of “green energy,” and championing LGBT rights. Her platform seeks to expand social programs such as “Medicare for All.”
“My opponent Michelle Vallejo, highlighting her radical progressive agenda, will further show the divide between the Democrats and the Republicans,” De La Cruz told The Epoch Times.
Vallejo, endorsed by progressives such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), became her party’s District 15 nominee after defeating moderate Democrat Ruben Ramirez by 35 votes in the primary.
U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, a moderate Democrat representing District 15, is switching to run in District 34. The Republican-dominated Texas Legislature redrew the South Texas voter map, moving his McAllen home into District 34 from District 15.
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