Excerpt from The Blast - Wed, Jul. 8, 2026

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has launched a digital ad accusing Republican Webb County Judge Tano Tijerina of helping steer a county contract to one of his congressional campaign donors.

The ad began running last week on Facebook and Instagram, and links to the Salon story that raised the pay-to-play allegation. The contract for GPS trackers went to Laredo-based Monarch Tracking, whose CEO, Neal Hill, donated $2,582.64 last July, reportedly around the time the county began soliciting proposals, and $781.56 in October, less than a week before the meeting where Tijerina expressed his support for Monarch Tracking’s bid.

“Tano Tijerina pushed to award his campaign donor a lucrative taxpayer-funded government contract,” reads the ad.

In response, a Tijerina campaign spokesperson defended the contract, saying the story left out that Webb County Sheriff Martin Cuellar — the brother of Tijerina’s opponent, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo — said the county needed GPS and camera equipment. The spokesperson also noted that Sheriff Cuellar supported awarding the contract to a Laredo-based company, and that the contract was approved by the county commissioners court.

“Before they take a swing at Judge Tijerina, they might want to figure out whose name is actually all over this,” the spokesperson told The Blast.

The DCCC plans to spend five figures on the digital spot.

“Tano Tijerina is a self-interested politician who cares more about political ambition than he does about serving the people of South Texas,” DCCC spokesperson Madison Andrus said in a statement to The Blast. “DCCC is going to make sure that every single voter in TX-28 knows who Tano Tijerina truly is when they go to cast their vote in November.”

In April, the DCCC promoted reporting from the Laredo Morning Times about a Federal Election Commission complaint accusing Tijerina of avoiding Texas’ resign-to-run provision. He launched his exploratory committee in June 2025 but didn’t formally launch his campaign till Dec. 2, the first day he was eligible to run without being forced to resign as county judge.

The DCCC spent $10,000 to $15,000 on that ad, which made more than 1 million impressions.

Tijerina is challenging Cuellar in one of three South Texas battleground districts. The National Republican Congressional Committee has named the county judge to its rebranded “MAGA Majority” program and voiced optimism about sinking Cuellar by highlighting his federal corruption charges for which he was pardoned late last year by President Donald Trump.

The Tijerina campaign also mentioned those charges in response to the DCCC’s latest ad.

“The Cuellars work for themselves,” the spokesperson said.

But the bulk of the GOP’s attention in Texas has been focused against U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, and Tejano star Bobby Pulido, a Democrat who is challenging U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, R-Edinburg.

The DCCC spent $10,000 to $15,000 promoting a Substack post criticizing De La Cruz for voting to expand ICE’s budget. The group named Pulido to its “Red to Blue” program the following month.

The Texas Tribune thanks its sponsors. Become one.