Texas Ballot Compare

General election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Nonpartisan voter guide · Texas

U.S. Representative, District 23

Race · November 3, 2026 general election

United States
Vote for oneResearched · fact-checked3-way race
Brandon HerreraRepublican
Katy Padilla StoutKaty Padilla StoutDemocratic
Ben MendozaIndependent
On ballot as
Brandon Herrera
Katy Padilla Stout
Ben Mendoza
Current role
Owner, small arms manufacturing company near San Antonio; YouTube creator
Attorney at her family's law firm focused on child welfare and education law
Mediator in El Paso,
Background
  • His campaign describes him as "an entrepreneur, Second Amendment activist, and social media personality"
  • Studied pre-law before starting a firearm manufacturing business (per campaign)
  • Moved to Texas with his businesses after the COVID lockdowns of 2020 (per campaign)
  • Education degree – University of Texas at Austin;
  • Law degree from South Texas College of Law (2013)
  • Licensed to practice law in Texas since 2014
  • Former elementary school teacher in Northside ISD (San Antonio)
Not found
Experience
  • Ran against U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales (2024); lost the Republican primary runoff by about 400 votes
  • Worked with Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign
  • Republican primary (March 3, 2026): first place
  • Nominee after Gonzales dropped out before the runoff
  • Appointed member of the Bexar County Child Welfare Board since 2017
  • Serves on the board of Artvango Therapeutic Services, a nonprofit
  • Ran for mayor of El Paso (November 5, 2024); received 4.6% of the vote
Top priorities
  • Border: would "oppose any spending bill that does not fund comprehensive border security"
  • Border: would seek to reinstate "Remain in Mexico"
  • Says "Big Bend's rugged terrain makes a physical wall unnecessary"
  • Guns: "fight for national concealed carry reciprocity and block any attempt to pass Red Flag laws"
  • Has taken the "No New Taxes" pledge
Show all 8
  • Would sponsor the REINS Act
  • Would co-sponsor a constitutional amendment limiting House members to three terms and senators to two
  • Veterans: "expand Tricare so every veteran can see the doctor of their choice"
  • "Making life more affordable for working families"
  • Health care: "I support expanding our Medicare system to cover all Americans"
  • Big Bend border wall: "We need a leader in Congress who can be trusted to stand up to the Trump Administration and fight for the Big Bend region"
  • Education: "our country should make a historic investment in universal Pre-K"
  • Immigration: "secures our border and allows for reasonable and humane immigration laws"
  • Voting: "Congress should take bold action to restore the Voting Rights Act"
Not found
Tidbits
  • Abortion: Pro Life
  • Immigration: "Deporting every illegal immigrant in the nation, full stop, is the bare minimum we can do to restore justice to our immigration system."
  • Guns: Pro Second Amendment
  • Health care: "Passing the Great Healthcare Plan is an essential first step to fix the broken mess of a system that Democrats have put in place."
Claims and the record
  • Past YouTube videos: Made Holocaust jokes on his YouTube channel and discussed owning a copy of "Mein Kampf"; Democrats circulated the footage. His campaign called allegations of antisemitism "bizarre, desperate and false" and said the clip omitted his comments condemning the book.
  • Past remarks about women: In a 2023 video he used a sexually explicit insult about Moms Demand Action founder Shannon Watts. House Speaker Mike Johnson, who endorsed him, called the language "detestable" but defended his candidacy. He said news outlets were combing his content to portray him negatively.
  • Abortion: Pro Abortion
  • Immigration: See Priorities
  • Guns: "Support universal background checks, a ban on bump stocks, and red-flag laws that work."
  • Health care: "I support expanding our Medicare system to cover all Americans. Short of that, I think we should strengthen the Affordable Care Act so that it actually works as intended."
Claims and the record
  • Controversies: None found in the news coverage we reviewed
  • Abortion: No public statement found
  • Immigration: No public statement found
  • Guns: No public statement found
  • Health care: No public statement found
Claims and the record
  • Controversies: None found in the news coverage we reviewed
Endorsements
  • President Donald Trump
  • House Speaker Mike Johnson
  • House Majority Leader Steve Scalise
  • House Majority Whip Tom Emmer
  • Numerous Republican Officials and Conservative Groups – too many to list (see website)
  • Numerous Democrat Officials and Liberal Groups – too many to list (see website)
None found in our research
Campaign website
brandonherreraforcongress.com
katyforcongress.com
Not found

Brandon Herrera

Republican
On ballot as
Brandon Herrera
Current role
Owner, small arms manufacturing company near San Antonio; YouTube creator
Background
  • His campaign describes him as "an entrepreneur, Second Amendment activist, and social media personality"
  • Studied pre-law before starting a firearm manufacturing business (per campaign)
  • Moved to Texas with his businesses after the COVID lockdowns of 2020 (per campaign)
Experience
  • Ran against U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales (2024); lost the Republican primary runoff by about 400 votes
  • Worked with Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign
  • Republican primary (March 3, 2026): first place
  • Nominee after Gonzales dropped out before the runoff
Top priorities
  • Border: would "oppose any spending bill that does not fund comprehensive border security"
  • Border: would seek to reinstate "Remain in Mexico"
  • Says "Big Bend's rugged terrain makes a physical wall unnecessary"
  • Guns: "fight for national concealed carry reciprocity and block any attempt to pass Red Flag laws"
  • Has taken the "No New Taxes" pledge
Show all 8
  • Would sponsor the REINS Act
  • Would co-sponsor a constitutional amendment limiting House members to three terms and senators to two
  • Veterans: "expand Tricare so every veteran can see the doctor of their choice"
Tidbits
  • Abortion: Pro Life
  • Immigration: "Deporting every illegal immigrant in the nation, full stop, is the bare minimum we can do to restore justice to our immigration system."
  • Guns: Pro Second Amendment
  • Health care: "Passing the Great Healthcare Plan is an essential first step to fix the broken mess of a system that Democrats have put in place."
Claims and the record
  • Past YouTube videos: Made Holocaust jokes on his YouTube channel and discussed owning a copy of "Mein Kampf"; Democrats circulated the footage. His campaign called allegations of antisemitism "bizarre, desperate and false" and said the clip omitted his comments condemning the book.
  • Past remarks about women: In a 2023 video he used a sexually explicit insult about Moms Demand Action founder Shannon Watts. House Speaker Mike Johnson, who endorsed him, called the language "detestable" but defended his candidacy. He said news outlets were combing his content to portray him negatively.
Endorsements
  • President Donald Trump
  • House Speaker Mike Johnson
  • House Majority Leader Steve Scalise
  • House Majority Whip Tom Emmer
  • Numerous Republican Officials and Conservative Groups – too many to list (see website)
Katy Padilla Stout

Katy Padilla Stout

Democratic
On ballot as
Katy Padilla Stout
Current role
Attorney at her family's law firm focused on child welfare and education law
Background
  • Education degree – University of Texas at Austin;
  • Law degree from South Texas College of Law (2013)
  • Licensed to practice law in Texas since 2014
  • Former elementary school teacher in Northside ISD (San Antonio)
Experience
  • Appointed member of the Bexar County Child Welfare Board since 2017
  • Serves on the board of Artvango Therapeutic Services, a nonprofit
Top priorities
  • "Making life more affordable for working families"
  • Health care: "I support expanding our Medicare system to cover all Americans"
  • Big Bend border wall: "We need a leader in Congress who can be trusted to stand up to the Trump Administration and fight for the Big Bend region"
  • Education: "our country should make a historic investment in universal Pre-K"
  • Immigration: "secures our border and allows for reasonable and humane immigration laws"
  • Voting: "Congress should take bold action to restore the Voting Rights Act"
Tidbits
  • Abortion: Pro Abortion
  • Immigration: See Priorities
  • Guns: "Support universal background checks, a ban on bump stocks, and red-flag laws that work."
  • Health care: "I support expanding our Medicare system to cover all Americans. Short of that, I think we should strengthen the Affordable Care Act so that it actually works as intended."
Claims and the record
  • Controversies: None found in the news coverage we reviewed
Endorsements
  • Numerous Democrat Officials and Liberal Groups – too many to list (see website)
Campaign website
katyforcongress.com

Ben Mendoza

Independent
On ballot as
Ben Mendoza
Current role
Mediator in El Paso,
Background
Not found
Experience
  • Ran for mayor of El Paso (November 5, 2024); received 4.6% of the vote
Top priorities
Not found
Tidbits
  • Abortion: No public statement found
  • Immigration: No public statement found
  • Guns: No public statement found
  • Health care: No public statement found
Claims and the record
  • Controversies: None found in the news coverage we reviewed
Endorsements
None found in our research
Campaign website
Not found

Open in the full comparison: El Paso County, Bexar County, Brewster County, Crane County, Culberson County, Crockett County, Edwards County, Frio County, Hudspeth County, Jeff Davis County, Kinney County, Maverick County, Medina County, Loving County, Pecos County, Presidio County, Reagan County, Schleicher County, Reeves County, Sutton County, Terrell County, Upton County, Uvalde County, Val Verde County, Ward County, Winkler County, Zavala County

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