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Texas Republican congressman Tony Gonzales announced Thursday night that he will be dropping his re-election bid but will serve out the rest of his term, after admitting to having had an affair with an aide who later committed suicide.
In a statement on X, Gonzales penned, "After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek re-election while serving out the rest of this Congress with the same commitment I've always had to my district."
The decision came after the senior members of the party in Congress released a statement calling for him to step down from his campaign.
On Wednesday, the 45-year-old confirmed he had a relationship with married staff member Regina Santos-Aviles.
Gonzales had previously dismissed the allegations as "blackmail" and a "co-ordinated" attack to unseat him.
Hours before his admission, the House Ethics Committee announced it was launching an investigation into whether Gonzales "engaged in sexual misconduct" towards one of his employees.
Regina Santos-Aviles died in September 2025, after setting herself on fire near her home in Uvalde, Texas.
During a podcast interview with Joe Pags on Wednesday, Gonzales noted that Santos-Aviles' death had nothing to do with the affair, saying she was "thriving" at work.
