Texas Rep. Tony Gonzales acknowledged he had a sexual relationship with a former staff member who later died by suicide. It’s an admission that came as the House Ethics Committee opened an investigation and as he heads to a Republican runoff in May.
The episode puts a spotlight on House workplace rules that bar members from having sexual relationships with employees they supervise and prohibit unwelcome sexual advances toward staff, according to the House code of conduct cited by CBS News. It also injects fresh turbulence into a tight intraparty contest for Texas’ 23rd Congressional District along the U.S.-Mexico border, where Gonzales and Brandon Herrera failed to clear 50% in the primary, the Texas Tribune reported.
‘I made a mistake’
In a radio interview with Joe Pagliarulo, Gonzales said, “I made a mistake and I had a lapse in judgment … and I take full responsibility for those actions,” according to audio from the show and reporting by POLITICO. Gonzales also said he had “absolutely nothing to do with” Regina Santos-Aviles’ death and described her passing as a shock.
Her death in September 2025 was officially ruled a suicide after she set herself on fire.
The House Ethics Committee said it is investigating whether Gonzales “engaged in sexual misconduct” with an employee or “discriminated unfairly by dispensing special favors or privileges.”
How the situation is evolving
According to a May 2024 text exchange obtained by CBS News, Gonzales sent the staffer explicit messages, including a request for a “sexy pic.” The Texas Tribune reported that Santos-Aviles’ widower shared texts showing Gonzales asking for a “sexy pic” and a “favorite position,” while also reporting that Santos-Aviles pushed back and said the messages were “going too far.”
Gonzales has faced calls to resign since the texts became public, CBS News reported. Gonzales has said he plans to cooperate with the ethics investigation and told Pagliarulo, “I look forward to the Ethics Committee starting an investigation,” according to the radio interview.
Gonzales and Herrera will face each other again in a May 26 runoff. Gonzales beat Herrera in a 2024 runoff by around 400 votes.
