The Texas border counties are once again in the middle of a battle for control of the House of Representatives

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas faced his first election since being elected Tuesday Indictment on bribery chargesone of three closely watched races along the U.S.-Mexico border as Republicans seek to extend their advance in the predominantly Hispanic region.

The choice is another test for the Democrats in a region that has historically been a stronghold and a recurring backdrop to the national debate over immigration.

Cuellar and his wife have pleaded not guilty in connection with the couple's ties to the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan. Republicans mounted an aggressive campaign in 2022 to oust Cuellar, one of his party's most outspoken moderates, but lost by double digits and withdrew from the district this year despite the indictment.

The House's border districts are an unrivaled outlier in Texas, where Republicans have full control of the legislature and no Democrat has held statewide office in more than 30 years.

Congressman is under indictment

Cuellar is running against Republican Jay Furman, a political newcomer and Navy veteran who is the incumbent's first challenger since his indictment on bribery charges in May.

Cuellar and his wife are accused of accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes from an Azerbaijani-controlled energy company and a bank in Mexico. The indictment gave Furman room to make his case in the 28th Congressional District, where Cuellar first took office in 2005.

However, the seat has drawn less attention from the Republican Party this cycle than it did in 2022, when a multimillion-dollar fight still ended in a decisive victory for Cuellar.

A rematch in a new district in Texas

Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz is again trying to fend off a challenge from Democrat Michelle Vallejo after winning by 8 percentage points in 2022.

De La Cruz was the first Republican to win a congressional election in South Texas. The 15th Congressional District was one of two new seats awarded to Texas after the 2020 census, driven by the state's booming Hispanic population, and was chosen by Republican mapmakers to give them an advantage.

Vallejo's campaign focused on protecting Social Security and Medicare, popular programs among her largely Latino and working-class base. De La Cruz has expressed support for tougher border security measures, including those backed by former President Donald Trump.

Republicans are focused on the Rio Grande Valley

Republicans are targeting Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez in a rematch with former Rep. Mayra Flores, who Republicans view as a rising star on the southern border.

In the three Texas border elections, Republicans have devoted most of their energy to their campaign to unseat Gonzalez, a moderate Democrat who defeated Flores by more than 8 percentage points in 2022.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson campaigned for Flores, the first Mexican-born woman elected to Congress, overtaking Gonzalez in a race that represents one of Republicans' biggest targets nationwide. Flores previously held the seat after winning a special election in early 2022 under a map more favorable to Republicans.

Changes in South Texas

Counties formed along the Texas-Mexico border significant swings in 2020 towards Trump. The shift to the right represents a changing political landscape along the U.S.-Mexico border Border security has become a key issue for voters. President Biden won Hidalgo County, a reliably blue county, by less than half the margin that Hillary Clinton achieved in 2016. In rural Zapata County, Trump completely flipped the district after Clinton won it by 33 percentage points four years earlier.

The gains have led Republicans to invest millions of dollars in districts once considered deep blue.

However, Democrats were able to close the gap nationally in 2020 when Trump won Texas by less than 6 percentage points. It was the narrowest victory by a Republican presidential candidate in Texas in decades.