An aide to Texas Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales admitted in a text to a coworker that she had an affair with him — a message sent months before she died after setting herself on fire. Regina Santos-Aviles appeared to confirm the relationship in the early hours of April 28, 2025.
"I had [an] affair with our boss and I'm fine," she sent a text to a colleague, according to a screenshot of the conversation obtained by the New York Post. Santos-Aviles' confession was first reported by San Antonio Express-News, which subsequently withdrew its endorsement of Gonzales ahead of the March 3 GOP primary, stating that the congressman "has questions to answer."
Shocking Revelation
In a statement issued Wednesday, Tony Gonzales told The New York Post that he was "not going to engage in these personal smears and instead will remain focused on helping President Trump secure the border and improve the lives of all Texans."
"Ms. Santos-Aviles was a kind soul who devoted her life to making the community a better place," he said. "Her efforts led to improvements in school safety, healthcare, and rural water like never before."
"It's shameful that [primary rival] Brandon Herrera is using a disgruntled former staffer to smear her memory and score political points, conveniently pushing this out the very day early voting started," the lawmaker added.
In December, Donald Trump publicly backed Gonzales in his bid for a fourth term in the House.
Months later, on September 13, 2025, Santos-Aviles poured gasoline over herself and set herself on fire in the backyard of her home in Uvalde, Texas. She succumbed to her injuries the next day.
Santos-Aviles, 35, was a wife and mother of one who served as a regional director for Gonzales. She worked in Texas' 23rd Congressional District, a vast stretch of West Texas along the Mexico border that includes parts of the western San Antonio area.
A former colleague of Santos-Aviles — who shared the text messages with The New York Post and has since relocated to Los Angeles to work on Democratic political campaigns — told the San Antonio Express-News that the relationship became an open secret among staffers during the 2024 election season.
The former aide said that in May, Santos-Aviles called them while crying after her husband found out the text messages between her and Gonzales that confirmed the affair. According to the colleague, her husband then sent a message to a group of local staff members, revealing the relationship.
Dramatic U-Turn
From that point on, the former staffer said, Santos-Aviles' standing in the office dramatically changed. She "went from the number one employee in the office to nothing." Meetings she had scheduled were suddenly canceled, and she no longer accompanied Gonzales on trips to Uvalde.
"She talked about Tony every day," the former staffer told the Express-News, recalling that he went to Gonzales district director Jalen Falcon in June 2025 with concerns about Santos-Aviles' mental well-being.
Speaking on Wednesday, the former aide to Tony Gonzales told the outlet that what unfolded was a "terrible thing." The aide said the congressman largely cut off contact with Regina Santos-Aviles after the spring of 2024, adding that he "just avoided" her from that point on.
"They're trying to contain all this," the onetime staffer added of Gonzales' response to the reports.
Gonzales has previously dismissed the alleged affair, which was first reported by the Daily Mail in October. At the time, he brushed off the claims as baseless attacks, saying it was simply "people throwing rocks at me, saying I'm doing nasty things."
