The Republican of Mexican origin who will make history 0:58
(CNN Spanish) --
Mayra Flores made history this June 15 by winning the special election for the 34th Congressional District of Texas.
Flores is not only the first Mexican-born woman to win this election, but this Republican won a seat that has historically been held by Democrats.
Flores was born in Burgos, Tamaulipas, Mexico, in 1985. He came to the United States "legally" at the age of six, according to his website.
During his youth he moved several times, but spent much of his life in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
In 2004 he graduated from high school in San Benito, Texas.
She says she was raised with "strong conservative values" that taught her to put God and family first.
Flores, who unseated Democrats from the congressional seat they held for more than 100 years, graduated in 2014 as a specialist in respiratory care and before being elected worked as a caregiver for the elderly and people with chronic respiratory problems.
According to her website, she was on the front lines helping covid-19 patients during the pandemic.
Mayra Flores will win the special election in Texas, helping Republicans take the House seat from Democrats, according to a CNN estimate
Texas congressional candidate Mayra Flores is seen at the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington on May 17, 2022.
The values that define Flores
Flores, a Latina woman with brown skin, black hair and eyes, says she wants to lead a political revolution.
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"This is what a Republican looks like," Flores told CNN.
"It's not just the richest, or whites."
Flores says his region has always been a Democratic stronghold: "We have been loyal to a party that has done absolutely nothing for us."
He adds that he has family in Mexico who don't visit them because "they are afraid to come" to the United States.
She says that she believes in strengthening the legal immigration system, in increasing the security of the United States border with Mexico, in lowering the costs of the health system, as well as in lowering taxes.
She says that she is "pro-life," meaning she is against abortion, and supports the second amendment that allows Americans to own firearms.
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The election of Mayra Flores in Congress
Flores ran in the general election alongside three other candidates — one Republican and two Democrats — in the all-party contest to succeed former Democratic Rep. Filemón Vela, who left his South Texas seat in March to join a lawyers and lobbyists in Washington.
Flores will serve the remainder of Vela's term, until January 2023.
The Republican National Congressional Committee called Flores' victory Wednesday a "model of success in South Texas," according to a memo obtained by CNN.
"This election was a referendum on reckless Democrat policies that created a border crisis, led to record inflation and skyrocketing gas prices," National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Emmer said in a statement after Flowers victory.
Flores benefited from significant investment by national Republicans and relative indifference from Democrats, who are estimated to have spent more than 20 to 1 on the campaign.
In his election, Flores won the support of the richest man in the world, businessman Elon Musk, who said that for the first time he voted for a Republican.
Musk anticipated a red "tide" in the November 2022 midterm elections.
United States Congress Mayra Flores
