Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales, a Democrat known for his progressive justice policies, will not seek reelection in 2026.

“As I approach the end of my second term, I’m faced with a hard decision,” Gonzales told reporters Thursday. “This job demands the best I can give it. But it also demands extraordinary patience from my family. They have been unbelievably supportive of my public service. And it’s for that reason I’m making the decision to now support them.”

The announcement comes as Judge Ron Rangel, a Democrat in the 379th Criminal District Court, had been rumored to be considering a primary challenge.

Rangel told the San Antonio Report last week he’s been encouraged to run for the district attorney post and was considering his options.

Gonzales was first elected in 2018, running on a platform of restorative justice and benefitting from roughly $1 million from liberal billionaire George Soros’ Texas Justice & Public Safety political action committee, which helped him defeat incumbent Democrat Nico LaHood in a primary.

Gonzales went on to institute one of the hallmarks of his career: A controversial cite-and-release program that proponents say keeps non-violent, low-level offenders from serving time in jail, but that critics have called “soft on crime.” 

He also frequently sought to make Bexar County a refuge from polices coming out of the state’s Republican-led Texas Legislature, declining to prosecute transgender care as child abuse or go after abortion providers in the wake of the state’s near-total abortion ban. 

Those policies helped earn him a well-funded challenge from Republican Marc LaHood in 2022, but Gonzales was reelected easily in a blue county with 56% of the vote. 

Since then, however, Gonzales has faced persistent criticism for failing to address a lengthy case backlog, as well as his staff’s extremely close relationship with justice reform group Wren Collective.

The state has also repeatedly sought to crack down on “rogue” district attorneys and remove from office those that step out of line.

Last month Gonzales joined district attorneys in Dallas and Harris counties in suing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over the latest of those attempts. 

Asked about the criticism he’s received over case backlog and the Wren Collective, Gonzales said Thursday that neither issue factored into his decision. 

“Those issues were nothing more than distractions,” he told reporters. “People that are supportive of our office and know what we do understood that was nothing more than soundbites and big clicks.”

He also blamed a “lack of resources” to pay prosecutors for the challenges with the case backlog.

“We are, right now, about 30 prosecutors down, because they keep leaving for jobs in smaller counties,” Gonzales said. “I don’t blame somebody for leaving for $30,000 more a year to work in a county that has less of a docket, so there’s less stress and more money.”

‘Not in the way’

Gonzales plans to serve out the remaining 18 months of his term, but said he wanted to offer other candidates enough time to prepare for the race.

He and Rangel share a campaign consulting firm, San Antonio-based Viva Politics.

“I want to leave on a high note, and so that’s why I’m doing this now,” Gonzales said. “I’m giving anybody who’s got an interest in running for this office an opportunity to apply for an open seat. I’m not in the way. I’m going to step aside.”

In a nod to the challenging nature of the job, however, Gonzales warned potential successors that it’s “easier from the outside looking in.”

“It’s not until you actually sit in my office and sit in my chair that you realize how difficult this job is.”