Vincent “Vince” Perez and Norma Chávez are headed to a runoff election in the Texas House of Representatives District 77 race, election results show.
Perez got the most votes at 39%. Chávez followed with 32%.
Former city council member Alexsandra Annello received 23% of the vote and El Paso businessman Homer Reza got just under 7%.
Now that the primaries are over, Perez and Chávez said they will begin shifting their attention to campaigning for the May 28 runoff election.
Perez, 42, said he plans to continue to reach out to voters and gain their support.
“I intend to earn the trust of voters who didn’t vote for me this first time around but we’re going to continue talking about ideas. We’re going to continue talking about the issues that matter to voters and I think voters have a clear choice in this race,” Perez told El Paso Matters.
Chávez said she will continue to run on her lengthy experience as a lawmaker and ability to reach across the aisle.
“I have the experience of crossing the aisle and working with Republicans for public policy issues. Obviously, it’s become very partisan, more so than when I was there prior,” Chávez told El Paso Matters late Tuesday night. “And I believe that you know, experience matters in this election so that we can use my skills legislative skills to accomplish more for El Paso.”
The winner of the May 28 runoff will take office in 2025 since they won’t face any Republican or independent opponent in the November general election. They will replace Rep. Lina Ortega, who held the office since 2016 and didn’t seek reelection.
Perez, 42, is a former El Paso County commissioner. He focused his campaign on economic development for El Paso and garnered support from some of the area’s most well-known businessmen, including Woody Hunt and Paul Foster.
Chavez, 63, campaigned on her experience as a Texas state representative for District 76 from 1997 to 2011.
Annello, 39, positioned herself as the progressive candidate on the campaign, garnering support from the Planned Parenthood Texas Votes PAC and Texas AFL-CIO, a state federation of labor unions representing workers from various fields.
Reza, 73, is an independent insurance agent and political newcomer.
A pro-charter school political action committee — Legacy 44 — released attack ads telling voters not to vote for Annello and instead for Perez or Chavez. Two of the PAC’s primary donors so far this year are billionaires Michael Bloomberg and Jim Walton.
The PAC spent $58,504 on the ad and stated it was supporting Perez and Chavez, opposing Annello, according to its campaign finance reports. The ad and report did not mention Reza.
Annello claimed, with no evidence, that Perez had connections to the PAC and was responsible for the ad. State law prohibits candidates from coordinating with PACs on independent expenditure messages.
Perez denied Annello’s claims and told El Paso Matters they have no merit.
Perez raised $45,195 and spent $45,568, according to his 8-day campaign finance report. He has $9,890 left over.
Among his largest contributors were Texans for Lawsuit Reform, $25,000; Paul Foster, $5,000; Woody Hunt, $5,000; Steve Fox, $1,000; Ellen Karlsruher, $1,000; Luke Lowenfield, $1,000; Ronald Lowenfield, $1,000; Raymond Palacios, $1,000; JK Robinson, $1,000; Eduardo Rodriguez, $1,000; Texas Association of Realtors, $1,000.
Annello raised $33,688, according to her 8-day report, and spent $27,844. Some of her main contributors include Planned Parenthood Texas Votes Pac, $6,000; Rosario and Robert Halpren, $3,000; Texas Parent PAC, $2,500; Texas State Teachers Association, $2,000; Deborah Kastrin, $2,500; Ted Houghton, $1,000; Richard Lange, $1,000.
Chavez raised $24,408 and spent $17,373, according to her 8-day report. She still has $17,039 in her campaign account. Some of her biggest donors were the Texas Cornerstone Credit Union League PAC, $5,000; El Paso Municpal Police Officers PAC, $2,500; El Paso Sheriff’s Officers Association, $2,500; Maria Teran, $2,500; Stanley Jobe, $2,500; Cissy Lizarraga, $1,000
