WASHINGTON — In the race to replace Rep. Michael McCaul in Congress, Republicans in Texas and Washington are consolidating behind prominent GOP attorney Chris Gober, who served as chief lawyer of Elon Musk’s super PAC and has raised more than $1 million for his campaign.
McCaul, an Austin Republican who has represented Central Texas’ 10th Congressional District for more than two decades, announced in September he wouldn’t seek reelection. Gober is one of 10 Republicans competing to succeed him in the red-leaning district, which covers all or parts of 13 counties spanning from Austin to East Texas.
While the district added more residents of liberal Travis County under Republicans’ redrawn congressional map, it also now stretches farther into bright-red East Texas. Nearly one-third of the seat’s population remains situated in Brazos County, home to Texas A&M University and College Station. The district would have given Donald Trump about 60% of the vote had it existed during the 2024 presidential election.
