Democrat Jessica Cisneros on Monday requested a recount in her May 24 primary runoff race against U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar after finishing just 281 votes behind the incumbent.
Cisneros pushed Cuellar, who has represented the 28th Congressional District since 2005, into a runoff after neither candidate took 50% of the vote in the March primary. Results for the runoff were canvassed and certified by the Texas Democratic Party on Monday.
“With just under 0.6 percent of the vote symbolizing such stark differences for the future in South Texas, I owe it to our community to see this through to the end,” said Cisneros, an immigration attorney, in a prepared statement.
Cuellar acknowledged that Cisneros has “every legal right to call for a recount” but expressed confidence his win would be confirmed.
“She has no path to victory and will not gain 281 votes,” he said in a prepared statement. “I welcome this process as it will only further verify our victory.”
The district encompasses south and east portions of Bexar County and stretches south to the border. Voters in Bexar County overwhelmingly supported Cisneros in last week’s runoff.
Cuellar declared victory on election night and sent a second statement calling for the party to come together after the final votes were counted Friday. The winner will face Republican Cassy Garcia, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).
