In ordinary circumstances, Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales would be cruising to re-election. The representative for Texas’s deep red 23rd Congressional District is a dyed-in-the-wool MAGA follower and, crucially, can boast Donald Trump’s wholehearted endorsement.
Trump said the 45-year-old Gonzales “knows the wisdom and courage that is required to defend our country” and that he has “my complete and total endorsement for re-election — HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!”
There’s only one teeny-tiny problem, the small matter of the bizarre death of his former aide and his secret romantic links with her.
Regina Santos-Avile (35) was the director of Gonzales’ Uvalde Regional Office, and on Sept. 14, 2025 was found engulfed in flames outside her home and died of her injuries hours later. Tributes flooded in, with colleagues describing her as “dedicated and respected” and noting her longtime community outreach efforts.
Screenshots proving @TonyGonzales4TX had an affair with his staffer, who tragically set herself on fire, have just been released.
— Dalton Sutton (@daltonsutton) February 18, 2026
Tony is a married Congressman with 6 kids. He's denied the affair for months. He lied.
Tony Must Resign.
If you agree, sign the petition below. pic.twitter.com/zbJUwRUnGY
Cops claimed “no indication of foul play,” and a fire department report shed some light on the mystery by confirming that their team had been informed by attending cops that she’d “doused herself in gasoline and was ignited into flames.”
“Tony Gonzales should resign immediately”
Now text messages have emerged that confirm suspicions that Santos-Avile had been in an extramarital affair with Gonzales (her boss), who has six children with his wife, Angel. The San Antonio Express News reports that Santos-Avile’s husband had discovered the affair, and that she was left “crying and distraught”. Soon after, she was dead.
Word is that a “devastating” report about Gonzales’s relationship with Santos-Avile is about to drop, with Laura Loomer teasing:
SCOOP:
— Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) February 15, 2026
A devastating report about GOP @RepTonyGonzales and one of his former staffers named Regina Santos-Aviles who committed suicide by lighting herself on fire is set to drop this week.
The report will address what everyone has been asking.
Was Regina Santos-Aviles in an…
“Source tells me there are allegedly text messages and Ring Camera footage that will put this question to rest once and for all. Rep. Gonzales is married and has 6 children. Regina Santos-Aviles was also married and had a small child at the time of her suicide. I’m told the report is career ending!”
Observers are aghast, seeing this controversy as a surefire way for the GOP to lose what should be a safe seat:
If there ever were a time for Tony Gonzales to resign (or not run for reelect), go home and take care of family business, it's when his taxpayer-funded staffer mistress burns herself alive. None of this is OK and Mike Johnson should demand he move along. https://t.co/zrJKl6JfFQ
— Patrick Parsons (@realPParsons) February 18, 2026
Public officials cannot have relationships with subordinates. It is an abuse of power. Period.
— Kristian Carranza (@kristianfortx) February 18, 2026
Boundaries exist for a reason. Tony Gonzales held power over someone’s job and future and he lied to the public about it.
Tony Gonzales should resign immediately. https://t.co/mbxXiDCmrQ
Local cops are reportedly blocking the release of the 911 call made about the incident, any video footage of it, and supporting records. Whether that’s because that would be too distressing for Santos-Avile’s family or because they’re covering something up that could be damaging to Gonzales is unclear, though it’s clear this sad and suspicious saga has more than a few twists left to come.
