Rep. Gonzales will face ethics panel probe for ‘sexual misconduct’

The House Ethics Committee on Wednesday announced an investigation into Rep. Tony Gonzales, a Texas Republican who has come under fire for allegedly having a sexual relationship with a staffer who died by suicide last year.

The committee said it would investigate whether Gonzales “engaged in sexual misconduct towards an individual employed in his congressional office,” or “discriminated unfairly by dispensing special favors or privileges.”

Gonzales has denied the affair with his former aide, Regina Santos-Aviles, who died in September 2025. Several Republicans have called on Gonzales to resign, though he has said he will remain in office.

The announcement of an investigation comes a day after primary elections in Texas. Gonzales, who is running for reelection, is headed to a runoff in May. He will square off against Brandon Herrera, who is challenging Gonzales from the right.

Katy Padilla Stout, a Democrat running for Gonzales’ seat, won outright in her party’s primary on Tuesday and advanced to the November general election. The district is in southwestern Texas along the border with Mexico. Voters there vote reliably Republican.

Pressure has been building around Gonzales for weeks, as additional details about his relationship with Santos-Aviles, who was married at the time of her death, started to emerge.

In February, NBC News reported on texts it obtained between Santos-Aviles and Gonzales in which the lawmakers allegedly messaged his then-staffer “send me sexy pics.” Adrian Aviles, Santos-Aviles’ widower, called Gonzales a “predator” in an interview with CNN just weeks before the primary.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who is contending with a razor-thin House majority, has called the allegations against Gonzales “very serious” but has argued he is entitled to due process.

Gonzales did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.