Johnny Garcia, 39, has spent most of his adult life serving the people of Bexar County as a sheriff’s deputy, from working inside the county jail to patrolling neighborhoods and serving as the spokesman for Sheriff Javier Salazar.

Now, the self-described “old-school Democrat” is drawing on those experiences as his party’s nominee for Texas’ 35th Congressional District. Garcia says one lesson in particular has become the cornerstone of his campaign: When deputies respond to an emergency, they don’t ask whether the person calling for help is a Republican or a Democrat.

They just respond.

Garcia is betting that his message of public service over party affiliation will resonate with voters who might otherwise be reluctant to support a Democrat in a district redrawn last year to favor Republicans. 

He faces Republican Carlos De La Cruz in November’s general election for a district that stretches from southern Bexar County into more conservative communities in Guadalupe, Wilson and Karnes counties.

But for Garcia, who spent nearly two decades building a career in law enforcement, a congressional campaign wasn’t always part of the plan.

It wasn’t until his longtime friend and former boss, Sheriff Salazar, approached him about running that Garcia began considering a future in politics. 

From the West Side to the Sheriff’s Office

The youngest of three siblings, Garcia grew up on San Antonio’s West Side, where his mother worked in civil service for more than 30 years.

His older sister, Stephanie Garcia, remembers a curious, energetic little boy who was always finding ways to get himself into trouble. In Spanish, she described him as travieso or mischievous.

She recalls him as someone who made friends easily, often bringing home children from different backgrounds and welcoming them into the family’s circle.

Garcia attended Memorial High School in the Edgewood Independent School District. After graduating, he enrolled at St. Philip’s College while working construction to support himself before joining the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office at 21.

His first assignment was inside the county jail, where he worked with programs designed to help incarcerated people prepare for life after their release. It was there, Garcia said, that he began to understand the importance of treating people with dignity, regardless of their circumstances. 

He eventually moved into patrol, responding to calls throughout Bexar County and interacting with people during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. Garcia later served as a hostage negotiator with BCSO’s SWAT team, a role he said taught him to listen carefully, remain calm and find common ground with people in crisis.

But it was an unexpected encounter during a patrol shift that would ultimately change the direction of his career. 

One evening in 2018, Sheriff Javier Salazar decided to join a deputy for an impromptu ride-along in eastern Bexar County. He pulled over and made a call on the radio, Garcia was the deputy who answered the call. 

Salazar recalled being surprised by how comfortable Garcia seemed around him, particularly compared with other deputies who were often nervous in the sheriff’s presence.

“Normally, when deputies deal with me, even to this day, they’re a little intimidated,” Salazar said. “They’re a little reserved for obvious reasons. They don’t want to say the wrong thing. But Johnny was just very at ease.”

During their conversation, Garcia made his pitch, mentioning that he hoped to become a public information officer, a position Salazar himself had previously held with the San Antonio Police Department.

When Salazar suggested pursuing training, Garcia told him he had already been attending classes on his own time and paying for them out of pocket. Impressed by his initiative, Salazar brought Garcia on as the sheriff’s office’s spokesman. 

Over the next several years, Garcia became one of Salazar’s closest advisers, helping the sheriff prepare speeches, navigate media appearances and work on legislation. 

The job took Garcia on trips to Washington, D.C., where he helped coordinate Salazar’s visits to the White House and prepared him for appearances on national television.

Salazar said Garcia’s experience as a hostage negotiator and deputy translated well to the demands of working behind the scenes, particularly when plans change unexpectedly. 

Their professional relationship eventually grew into a friendship. Outside work, Salazar said, the two occasionally attend Spurs games or get together to watch football.

And when Texas Republicans redrew the state’s congressional districts last year, including the 35th congressional seat, Salazar and members of his political team thought Garcia was the best man for the job. 

Salazar recalled the day he told Garcia he should run for congress.

“At first, he kind of wasn’t sure whether to take it seriously or not, because we have been known to play pranks on each other. I don’t think he could tell if I was serious about it or not,” Salazar said.

Within hours after talking to his family, Garcia agreed.

His sister remembers being caught off guard when Garcia told her he was considering a congressional campaign. “No way, no way,” she recalled thinking. 

After the surprise wore off, she found herself wondering how her family could rally behind him and his run for Congress. 

“The first thing I thought was how can I help him?” Stephanie Garcia said. “From day one I was very confident about what he was doing.”

Before long, the family was knocking on doors and making phone calls to support his campaign.

An old-school Democrat in a Republican district

Garcia argues that the same commitment to serving people regardless of their political beliefs should extend to representing constituents in Congress. 

But his appeal to Republican voters goes beyond his experience as a deputy, operating in a middle ground on often polarizing issues, like immigration.

Garcia has criticized former President Joe Biden’s handling of immigration, arguing that securing the border should be a priority for both parties. He supports giving Border Patrol the resources it needs while holding immigration enforcement agencies to the same accountability standards as local police.

He also criticizes the current administration’s approach to immigration enforcement as overly broad and disruptive of lives and industries critical to economic development — such as home builders and the construction industry. 

“It’s not the targeted enforcement that we need. They need to be going after the tough criminals,” Garcia said in an interview with the San Antonio Report. “The people that keep our streets less safe while making sure that our border is secure, not targeting industries that are trying to reduce the cost of housing these days.”

On economic issues, Garcia has taken more traditional Democratic positions, calling for an end to President Donald Trump’s tariffs, lowering prescription drug prices and protecting Social Security, Medicare and federal food assistance programs. 

For Garcia, housing affordability has taken a key position as an issue he can personally relate to. 

“The average age of owning a home these days is now nearly 40 years old. I’m 39 and I don’t own a home. I rent,” he said. “The vast majority of people my age, if not younger, are in the same shoes and it seems like it’s becoming further and further from a reality to own your own home.”

His platform calls for restricting large investment firms from buying up residential properties and encouraging them to make homeownership more attainable. 

Still, Garcia recognizes that winning over Republican voters requires understanding why some voters have turned away from his party.

Garcia recalled striking up a conversation with a Republican constable in Karnes County, who identified himself as a MAGA Republican.

What began as a lighthearted exchange between two law enforcement officers eventually turned into a discussion about the Democratic Party and the issues that had pushed the constable away from it. 

According to Garcia, the constable told him he had been a Democrat roughly 20 years earlier but felt the party had abandoned rural communities, particularly on issues involving border security and the economy. 

Garcia tried to find common ground with the constable, acknowledging what he called the Biden administration’s shortcomings on immigration while explaining his opposition to current economic policies. 

The conversation didn’t end with the constable promising his vote, but Garcia said it reinforced his belief that Democrats need to be willing to listen to people who disagree with them to reach across the aisle. 

It’s an approach his sister says has been part of his personality since childhood.

“He’s the type of person that if we don’t agree, that’s okay. It’s not the end of the world,” she said. “He’s the person that will respect your opinion, but still hold his. And I think that’s really important.”