By Alex Seitz-
Wald
WASHINGTON.— The close electoral contest between the progressive challenger Jessica Cisneros and the Democratic representative Henry Cuellar is headed for a high-profile second round, after neither candidate surpassed the threshold necessary to avoid the second round in the Democratic primaries. Texas on Tuesday, according to projections from our sister network NBC News.
Texas law requires candidates to win more than 50% in a primary to secure their party's nomination.
But a little-known third candidate in the race won enough votes to keep the top two below the threshold,
prompting a runoff election to take place on May 24.
In a clash of generations and ideologies, Cisneros, a 28-year-old lawyer backed by the national progressive movement, will face Cuellar, a 66-year-old moderate who has served 18 years in Congress and is now facing controversy following the recent FBI raid on his home and campaign office.
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Jessica Cisneros, Democratic candidate for the 28th congressional district in Texas, at a rally on February 12, 2022. Eric Gay / AP
In 2020, Cisneros came within 2,700 votes of defeating Cuellar, but this year more people recognized her on the ballot and she had the support of more national progressive leaders and groups.
Labor unions and liberal groups like Planned Parenthood and EMILY's List, which rarely join a campaign against an incumbent lawmaker, decided to go after Cuellar,
hoping to oust one of the few Democrats who they do not support abortion rights in Congress.
Both wings of the Democratic Party -- the moderate and the progressive -- have been closely watching the primaries in Texas's 28th congressional district for clues about the future of their party.
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Representative Henry Cuellar, a Democrat from Texas, speaks to members of the media at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, U.S., on Thursday, September 30, 2021. Bloomberg via Getty Images
Cuellar has broken with Democrats numerous times, but said he has done so to represent his district, a politically divided and demographically dispersed swath of South Texas made up of mostly rural land stretching from San Antonio to the border. with Mexico.
Allies of Cisneros, such as the progressive Working Families Party, heralded the race as
a "battle between David and Goliath
," with the oil and gas industry and "anti-worker" corporate interests lining up behind a headline they labeled "Trump's favorite Democrat."
This is how the primaries are lived in Texas in the midst of a controversial electoral law
March 2, 202201:41
“I would love a clear win, but running against a legislator entrenched in his position makes that nearly impossible,” tweeted Ilyse Hogue, the former president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, who has been a major supporter of Cisneros.
“The second round is victory.
It's time to give it our all,” she added. However, moderate Democrats dismissed the idea that the result was some kind of indicator of the ideological preferences of the electorate.
Instead, they suggested that the problem with Cuellar was that the FBI had raided him, something that had happened exclusively to him and had nothing to do with ideology.
In January, the FBI raided Cuellar's home and campaign office as part of an investigation into a US businessman's ties to Azerbaijan.
It is not clear if Cuellar was one of the targets of the investigation and he has denied any wrongdoing, but the investigation nonetheless raised questions about the lawmaker.
The FBI seized documents and computers in two houses linked to Congressman Henry Cuéllar
Jan. 21, 202201:51
In any case, regardless of the outcome of the runoff in District 28,
progressives will not leave Texas empty-handed.
Greg Casar, an Austin City Council member who ran for Congress with the backing of groups like Justice Democrats, won his primary election in Texas' 35th District, according to NBC News' projection.
And Jasmine Crockett, the most liberal lawmaker in the Texas state house, is well positioned to win her party's nomination for a seat in Houston.
A contest with many candidates prevented Crockett from passing the 50% threshold, but she was far ahead of the other contenders.