Rep. Mayra Flores was rejected by Congressional Hispanic Caucus, says new report

Rep. Mayra Flores, the Texas Republican who flipped a border district in a June special election, was prevented from joining the Congressional Hispanic Caucus last month.

The freshman congresswoman requested to join the CHC in early October but was rejected shortly after, reports Townhall.

"As the first Mexican-born Congresswoman to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives, I thought joining the Congressional Hispanic Caucus would be a constructive way to build bridges and work in a bipartisan manner on behalf of our constituents. I was wrong,” Flores told Townhall.

“This denial once again proves a bias towards conservative Latinas that don’t fit their narrative or ideology.”

Flores became the first Republican to represent the Rio Grande Valley since Reconstruction after defeating Democrat Dan Sanchez in Texas’ 34th Congressional District special election in June.

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus was founded as a bipartisan organization in in 1976 but has been functionally Democratic since the 1990s, when its Republican members left to protest its support for improved relations with Cuba.

The CHC last rejected a Republican applicant in 2017, when it declined to admit Florida Rep. Carlos Curbelo, the son of Cuban exiles.

Congress’s conservative Hispanic members have since formed the Congressional Hispanic Conference, which is co-chaired by Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida and Tony Gonzales of Texas.

Latinos, who traditionally vote Democrat, have been shifting toward Republicans this election cycle over crime, the economy and their embrace of far left policies that remind them of socialism in their home countries.

Flores is running for re-election against Rep. Vicente Gonzales, the Democrat currently representing Texas’ 15th Congressional District.

Elections Daily moved the race from “Toss-up” to “Leans R” on Monday.