Democratic challenger Jessica Cisneros, a 28-year-old immigration attorney running for Congress with heavy support from progressives, has forced a primary runoff against U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar in South Texas.
Neither candidate Tuesday night got more than 50% of the vote needed to win outright.
The race was among the most heated in Texas’ first-in-the-nation primary. Cuellar is among the most conservative Democrats in Congress, and a Cisneros victory would bring a seismic liberal shift to the district that runs from San Antonio to the Texas border.
Cisneros is a former intern of Cuellar’s who also ran against him in 2020. She narrowly lost, and this time ran a more aggressive campaign that attacked Cuellar over FBI agents searching his home just before voting began.
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The Associated Press has learned that the investigation relates to the former Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan. Cuellar has not been charged with a crime and has denied wrongdoing.
The runoff is in May.
