❓WHAT HAPPENED: Representative Tony Gonzales (R-TX) is facing accusations of an affair with an aide who later died by suicide. Despite the release of explicit text messages allegedly exchanged between the two, the GOP lawmaker is refusing calls to resign.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Rep. Tony Gonzales, former aide Regina Aviles, and several GOP lawmakers, including Reps. Chip Roy (R-TX), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Nancy Mace (R-SC).
📍WHEN & WHERE: Aviles died by suicide in September 2025, with the rumored affair exposed a month later. The allegations have become a central issue in the Texas Republican primary, which began early voting on February 17, 2026.
💬KEY QUOTE: “I will not resign. I work every day for the people of Texas. And there will be an opportunity for all the details and facts that come out.” – Tony Gonzales
🎯IMPACT: The scandal has intensified scrutiny on Gonzales ahead of his primary election and prompted calls for his resignation from fellow GOP lawmakers.
Representative Tony Gonzales (R-TX) declared on Tuesday that he will not resign amid allegations of an affair with his former aide, Regina Aviles, who died by suicide in September 2025. Gonzales, who is married with six children, has faced mounting pressure from fellow Republican lawmakers to step down, following the release of explicit text messages allegedly exchanged between him and Aviles.
“I will not resign. I work every day for the people of Texas. And there will be an opportunity for all the details and facts that come out. What you’ve seen is not all the facts,” Gonzales said on Capitol Hill after being turned away by staff in House Speaker Mike Johnson‘s (R-LA) office.
News — Tony Gonzales, facing scandal, told me: “I will not resign.”
I asked him if the texts are authentic and if he had carried on an affair with a staffer. He would not directly say.
“What you have seen are not all the facts.”
He plans to speak with Johnson today pic.twitter.com/C2S99zOQ8j
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) February 24, 2026
The alleged affair reportedly began in 2024, with text messages showing Gonzales pressuring Aviles for explicit photos and making sexual comments. In one exchange, Gonzales asked Aviles for a “sexy pic” and later inquired about her favorite sexual positions. Aviles, who had been his regional district director in Uvalde since 2021, reportedly confided in a friend about the affair, sharing text messages and expressing concern that her husband would discover the relationship.
Subsequently, Aviles’s husband reportedly discovered the affair in July 2025, leading to their separation and her subsequent depression. Aviles took her own life in September 2025 after dousing herself with gasoline and setting herself on fire. Her death was ruled a suicide, with an autopsy revealing she was intoxicated at the time.
Meanwhile, Gonzales has denied the allegations, calling earlier reports “untruthful,” but has not directly addressed the newly surfaced text messages—fellow GOP lawmakers, including Reps. Chip Roy (R-TX), Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) have publicly called for Gonzales to step down. The revelations have cast a shadow over Gonzales’s re-election campaign, as he faces a primary challenge from Second Amendment activist and firearm manufacturer Brandon Herrera. Early voting for the Republican primary in Texas began on February 17, with the primary election set for March 3.
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