Katy Padilla-Stout Wins U. S. House of Representatives District 23
By Jose G. Landa, Copyright 2026 Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc.
Democrat Katy Padilla Stout won the November 3, 2026 election for Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, defeating Republican Brandon Herrera and Independent Ben Mendoza to capture the seat previously held by Republican Tony Gonzales.
With an estimated 99 percent of votes counted, Padilla Stout received 142,032 votes, or 52.1 percent. Herrera received 119,795 votes, or 44 percent, while Mendoza received 10,610 votes, or 3.9 percent.
The unofficial results gave Padilla Stout a 22,237-vote advantage over Herrera and an 8.1-percentage-point margin.
Her victory shifted the congressional seat from Republican to Democratic control and will send a new representative to Washington, D. C. for a district encompassing communities across a large section of the Texas-Mexico border region, including Eagle Pass.
Padilla Stout will take office in January 2027, succeeding Gonzales, who resigned from Congress effective April 14, 2026. Gonzales had represented District 23 since January 3, 2021, serving more than five years before leaving office during his third term.
Following his resignation, the district’s congressional offices remained open under the supervision of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Staff continued assisting residents with federal agency matters and other constituent services during the vacancy.
The election established who would represent the district for the next two-year congressional term.
Padilla Stout, a San Antonio attorney and former public school teacher, brought a background in education and legal advocacy to the race. She earned an education degree from the University of Texas at Austin and taught elementary school in Northside Independent School District before earning her law degree from South Texas College of Law.
Her professional experience also included service on the Bexar County Child Welfare Board, adding child welfare work to her background as an educator and attorney.
District 23 stretches across much of the territory between San Antonio and El Paso, including the Big Bend region and a substantial portion of the international border. Its communities face federal policy decisions involving border security, international trade, healthcare, education and rural infrastructure.
Padilla Stout’s victory marked the first Democratic win in the district since Pete Gallego was elected in 2012.
She will enter the U.S. House of Representatives when the 120th Congress convenes in January, beginning a new chapter in the district’s representation following Gonzales’ departure.
