GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales heads to a runoff in Texas amid a new ethics probe in the House : NPR
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) speaks during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing February 10, 2026 in Washington, DC
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Samuel Corum/Getty Images/Getty Images North America
A day after Rep. Tony Gonzales was forced into a runoff in his district’s Republican primary in May, the House Ethics Committee announced it was opening a formal investigation into the Texas Republican.
The panel voted to create a subcommittee to investigate allegations that Gonzales “engaged in sexual misconduct toward an individual employed in his congressional office and/or unfairly discriminated in granting special favors or privileges.”
This comes after Gonzales faced increasing pressure from members of his party to resign or drop out of his race after explicit text messages from him to his then-staffer, Regina Santos-Aviles, were published in The San Antonio Express-News. NPR has not independently verified these text messages.
Santos-Aviles committed suicide last September.
Gonzales has previously denied any wrongdoing. His office did not immediately respond to NPR’s request for comment on the ethics investigation announcement.
It is against the House code of conduct for lawmakers to have sexual relations with staff.
On Tuesday night, Gonzales advanced to the May 26 runoff against challenger Brandon Herrera.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., previously said Gonzales needs to address the allegations with his constituents and is entitled to due process.
“As in every case like this, you must allow the investigations to proceed and all the facts to come to light,” Johnson told reporters last week. “If being accused of something is going to be the litmus test for a person to continue to serve in the House, you’re going to have a lot of people who are going to have to resign or be impeached or expelled from Congress.”
The ethics committee’s investigation could take months. He will announce the members who will be part of the investigation subcommittee once they have been selected.
