'Sweet lord Jesus': Leaked audio catches GOP Rep. alarmed at polling for Dem opponent

A leaked audio recording from a private fundraiser has caught Rep. Monica De La Cruz privately alarmed about her reelection prospects in Texas's 15th Congressional District, telling supporters her own internal polling shows her leading Dem opponent Bobby Pulido by a single point.

"We ran the poll and what we found was that I am up by only one point in the poll," De La Cruz told the room, per audio obtained by Punchbowl News reporter Max Cohen. "One point. And I said, 'Oh, sweet Lord Jesus.' Right? That's not good."

De La Cruz, a Republican who flipped the South Texas district in 2022, attributed the tight margin not to personal unpopularity but to redistricting. Eighty percent of her current district is newly drawn territory, she said, meaning most voters simply don't know her yet.

"It's not that people don't like me," she told supporters. "It's that people don't know me yet."

Her opponent presents a formidable challenge. Pulido is a Latin Grammy award winner — as is his father — and Bell Vela High School in the district is named after the family. His uncle is a former county judge and his cousin is a former district attorney, giving the Pulido family deep roots in Hidalgo County.

"This is a very, very political family and obviously has musical talent as well," De La Cruz acknowledged to the crowd before delivering the polling news.

She closed by telling supporters that fundraising had become critical to building her name recognition in the new territory before November.