Henry Cuellar

Why they say you should vote for them

The candidate's own case to voters, summarized from their campaign and public statements.

• Says South Texas did not send him to Washington "to be a rubber stamp for either party."[1]
• Points to his seniority on the House Appropriations Committee, where he is ranking member of the Homeland Security subcommittee, and to federal money he has secured for district roads, airports and water projects.[1],[3]
• Calls tariffs "hidden taxes" on South Texas families and promotes his American Consumer Tariff Rebate Act.[1]

Background

• U.S. Representative, Texas District 28, U.S. House of Representatives · 2005–present[1],[2]
• Indicted in May 2024 on federal bribery, money laundering and conspiracy charges, which he denied; President Trump pardoned him in December 2025 before trial · 2024–2025[4],[3]
• Texas Secretary of State, State of Texas · 2001[1],[2]
• State Representative, Texas House of Representatives · 1987–2001[1],[2]

Education

• Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin[1],[2]
• J.D., University of Texas School of Law[2]
• M.A., International Trade, Texas A&M International University[2]
• B.S., Foreign Service, Georgetown University[1],[2]
• M.S., Defense and Strategic Studies, U.S. Naval War College[1],[2]
• A.A., Laredo College (formerly Laredo Community College)[1],[2]

Where they stand

• Taxes
  Calls tariffs hidden taxes that raise prices on groceries, fuel and household goods; sponsors the American Consumer Tariff Rebate Act to send money back to families.[1]
• Immigration
  Says securing the border and deporting violent criminals is "common sense" but opposes spending billions to detain children and separate families; voted for the January 2026 Homeland Security funding bill (H.R. 7147), saying it did not add money for ICE.[1],[5],[6]
• Abortion
  Opposes abortion, according to The Texas Tribune; in 2021 he was the only House Democrat to vote against the Women's Health Protection Act (H.R. 3755), which would have protected abortion access nationwide.[7],[8]
• Guns
  Voted against the 2022 House bill to ban assault weapons (H.R. 1808).[9]
• Social Security & Medicare
  Says he helped pass the Social Security Fairness Act restoring full benefits for teachers, first responders and other public workers, and co-sponsored a bill on Medicare coverage of multi-cancer early detection tests.[1]

Voting record

A selection of notable recorded votes. Not a complete record.

In their words