Limon and Gonzales will face off in the General election on Nov. 5, vying to represent the 23rd Congressional District of Texas.
The election will decide who will represent El Paso residents in the Socorro, San Elizario, Clint, and Fabens areas according to a district map provided by congress.gov.
Santos Limon
Limon states that he decided to run for office over a year ago. After analyzing the district, the candidates and past elected officials and their campaigns, he felt that it was the right time and that he was going to be the winner.
What prepared Limon for this new journey was his background as a civil engineer working in the railroad industry. This experience allowed him to work throughout the 23rd Congressional District meeting the people, witnessing their experiences, and seeing what needed to change.
One of the main platforms Limon is running on is the building of the nation’s first high speed train; a 220 mile-an-hour train that would take travelers from San Antonio to El Paso and back.
“Our nation’s future depends on it, we cannot afford to keep adding lanes to our freeways and byways, that is a big mistake,” Limon said. “Looking into our future, we must invest in railed infrastructure.”
Limon believes that bringing this train to the district would create jobs and boost economic and infrastructural development for both the region and the country.
He states that it would bring ecotourism by connecting seven protected parks and bring in more revenue for local businesses.
Limon has created several coalitions including a water coalition which aims to help the district conserve and preserve water resources. He also started a farming coalition which is pushing to make Texas the pomegranate capital of the U.S. In additio,n he created a ranching coalition aiming to help ranchers struggling to sell and raise their cattle and a union coalition aiming to teach youth the importance of working in unionized labor.
He stresses the importance of having visionary politicians who can address future challenges effectively. Limon expressed his commitment to being such a leader, highlighting one of his proposed bills aimed at improving the education system and reducing the number of public-school closures.
“The bill is aiming to force the governors of all the states that are going through this issue, to allocate 85% of the public educational budget, federal budget, to go to public schools; mandate it,” Santos said. “Cause right now, governors are grabbing 30% to 40% of that federal educational budget and they give that to charter schools.”
Limon also noted that during his travels through all 29 counties in the 23rd district, he discovered that residents are not interested in free benefits but prefer having the tools they need to work.
“We want the tools to work. Everybody’s asking the federal government, just give us the tools and we’ll get to work,” said Santos. “This is true. This is all over the district and this is all constituents—Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and people from all walks of life. Nobody wants anything for free.”
This understanding further motivated Limon to advocate for election reform and to finance his own campaign, rather than seeking donations from supporters, even though this positioned him as the underdog in the race.
Tony Gonzales
Gonzales is running for re-election, his campaign website, tonygonzalesforcongress.com, shares the issues he has worked on as the current representative and will continue to pursue if elected.
A critical issue in Gonzales’ campaign is border security and immigration reform by pushing for harsher penalties on drug dealers and human smugglers. He also shares his plans to support law enforcement, better veteran’s benefits, expand mental health services in Texas, and support diverse forms of education. Gonzales was not available for comment.
The last day to register to vote is Oct. 7. For more information on the general election, voter registration, and important dates, voters can visit epcountyvotes.com.
Ximena Cordero is a staff reporter and may be reached at [email protected]
