EDINBURG, Texas – Veteran, educator and attorney Ruben Ramirez says he is the only Democrat who can defeat Republican Monica de la Cruz in the general election race for Congressional District 15.
De la Cruz came close to winning CD 15 in 2020. The district shrunk from a “D-Plus 21” seat to a “D-Plus 2” seat as a result of her strong showing. Following redistricting, CD 15 it is now said to be a “R-Plus 3” district.
CD 15 is an open seat because the incumbent that beat De la Cruz – U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez – moved to neighboring Congressional District 34. De la Cruz still has to win in the Republican Party primary.
“The momentum is growing exponentially for my campaign,” Ramirez said. “Now the polls have opened for early voting we have been receiving a lot of support – both from leaders, some of whom have to be private about it, and the community at large. They see who I am, what I stand for, that I have a very positive attitude about stuff, especially after all of these forums and all of these debates.”
Ramirez said Democratic Party operatives in Washington, D.C., are fully aware he is the only candidate that can defeat De la Cruz. He said they have vetted all the candidates running in the CD 15 Democratic Party primary and come to the conclusion he is the best bet.
“People have seen that I am the clear choice for the Democratic Party and the only candidate that can win and beat somebody like Monica de la Cruz in November. And that is exactly what we are going to do. We are reaching out to Democrats and Republicans. Republicans that really like me and are going to come over and vote for me this time around,” Ramirez said.
Asked what his claims are based on, Ramirez said: “According to everything they are showing me, the data and things of that nature, I am the only candidate out of the Democratic contenders that can beat Monica de la Cruz. And the evidence is showing that the Republicans also know that.”
Ramirez said he has not shared this information with the media up until now.
“I have not really said it publicly. It is something that we have known internally. It is something that we are now hearing from the Republican side.”
Last week, Rep. Gonzalez endorsed Ramirez. Ramirez explained why he believes he is the best candidate to succeed Gonzalez.
“We have been able to consolidate support, because, not only given my military record, having served honorably in our Armed Services, things of that nature, but it has been my long, lifelong community service, to my community and country that really helps bring everybody together.”
Having mounted an aggressive primary campaign and appeared in numerous candidate forums, Ramirez said voters are getting to know him better.
“They understand my personality, they understand who I am. I am a shrewd negotiator, I am very good at what I do both as an attorney and also as an educator, and I understand the needs of our community and the district. I grew up here. I am from here. I have had my successes and my failures here.”
Ramirez said he chooses to raise his family in the Valley because it is “an amazing place with huge opportunities.” That said, it does have its challenges, he pointed out.
“There are some shortcomings that we have got to address and that is why I want to be the voice of the district in Congress, so that all Texas families have a shot at the American Dream,” Ramirez said.
“And as I have said before, I have lived on a cardboard floor. I know what it is like to take cereal home from school and collect the boxes so we have enough to eat. I know what it is like with my grandmother who helped raise me, to count pennies and tips on the kitchen table and say, where are we going to spend this money today? What bill do we have to pay before something gets cut off?”
Ramirez said his grandmother used to put one dollar of gas in her car so she could get to and from work.
“Those are the struggles our community is still facing today. And that is what I want to make sure we address, making sure we have quality education, expanded funding for STEM research, but also for vocational and trade schools, to make sure those kids that are not going to college have a trade, so they can start a career on day one when graduate, with three or four years of experience, making sure they have the licenses and the apprenticeships, and, after that, that they are making $25 or $30 an hour, so they can go down the street to SpaceX, earning $80 an hour as a welder. So, we are not talking about having minimum wage jobs.”
Ramirez added: “I want more for our South Texas families. I want them to succeed and live that American Dream to the fullest potential.”
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