Scoop: Republican launches House bid in key swing district GOP aims to flip in 2026 midterms

FIRST ON FOX Eric Flores an Army veteran and former federal prosecutor on Monday launched a Republican campaign for Congress in a key battleground House district at the southern tip of Texas We need fewer politicians and more fighters who will put our communities first Flores commented in a video that was shared first with Fox News Digital He pledged that in Congress I'll stand with President Trump fight and deliver for South Texas every single day Flores is running in Texas' th Congressional District which stretches along the Gulf Coast from just south of Corpus Christi to the territory line with Mexico It includes Brownsville and stretches westward to include parts of McAllen SCOOP HOUSE REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN ARM AIMS TO ANCHOR MAMDANI TO VULNERABLE DEMOCRATS The district is one of the National Republican Congressional Committee NRCC is targeting in the midterm elections as the House GOP's campaign arm defends the party's razor-thin majority in the chamber The district appears to be a prime pickup possibility for Republicans as it's been trending to the right Former President Joe Biden carried the district by points in the White House race Four years later President Donald Trump won the district by nearly five points FIRST ON FOX HOUSE REPUBLICANS LAUNCH AD PROMOTING PASSAGE OF BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL However Democrats carried the district in last year's Senate electoral process with now-former Rep Colin Allred who is running again for the Senate in topping Sen Ted Cruz by six points Republicans view incumbent Democratic Rep Vicente Gonzalez as vulnerable Gonzalez who's in his fifth term in Congress defeated former GOP Rep Mayra Flores in the and elections but his conquest in last November's rematch to hold the district was by just points Flores who has met with NRCC executives is a Spanish speaker who grew up in the Rio Grande Valley He was commissioned in the U S Army as an infantry officer and rose to the rank of captain He has served in the Texas Army National Guard and has commanded soldiers during Operation Guardian Sponsorship along the U S southern boundary with neighboring Mexico Flores is also a former assistant U S attorney helping in the prosecutions of cartel-connected and human trafficking operations His campaign biography also notes that Flores secured the conviction of one of Texas s Top Ten most-wanted fugitives accomplishments recognized with two U S Attorney s Awards Flores who also served as a municipal judge in Alton Texas is at this time a partner at a statewide legal firm where he leads the litigation department defending municipalities and school districts across Texas He is married and the father of two children Every day I see how broken policies hurt our region Flores declared Enough is enough Politicians put themselves first while the Valley gets left behind Flores commented that President Trump stood up to the insiders and fought for places like ours the communities the career politicians invariably forget We cannot lose this opportunity That s why I m running for Congress We need bold principled leadership and we need it now While several other Republicans are running in the GOP primary in the district next March Flores is considered the only major Republican candidate