# Democrat flips Texas seat after Republican's YouTube scandal

> Katy Padilla Stout wins Texas' 23rd Congressional District, a seat Republicans lost after nominating Brandon Herrera, whose crude YouTube jokes damaged his campaign.
- Title: Democrat flips Texas seat after Republican's YouTube scandal
- Summary: Katy Padilla Stout wins Texas' 23rd Congressional District, a seat Republicans lost after nominating Brandon Herrera, whose crude YouTube jokes damaged his…
- Keywords: katy padilla stout, brandon herrera, texas 23rd congressional district, 2024 election, democrats, republicans, border wall, CBS News
- Source: CBS News — https://cbsnews.com/news/texas-23-district-katy-padilla-stout-brandon-herrera-tony-gonzales
- Author: Caroline  Linton
- Published: 2026-11-04T07:01:36+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: katy padilla stout, brandon herrera, texas 23rd congressional district, 2024 election, democrats, republicans, border wall, news
## Democrat wins Texas seat Republicans held
Katy Padilla Stout is projected to win Texas' 23rd Congressional District, flipping the seat after Republicans nominated controversial pro-gun YouTube personality Brandon Herrera.
## Herrera's YouTube past haunted his campaign
Herrera's YouTube channel has four million subscribers. During his primary challenge against former Rep. Tony Gonzales, his jokes about Nazis and veteran suicides were widely shared, along with crude jokes about women.
## The seat opened after Gonzales resigned
The seat has been vacant since April, when GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales resigned. He was facing an expulsion vote after admitting an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide.
## Immigration policy shifted the district's politics
The Trump administration's hardline immigration policy became a key issue. Both Herrera and Padilla Stout opposed border wall construction in Big Bend National Park, which a judge halted last month.
## Key takeaway

Democrat Katy Padilla Stout won Texas' 23rd Congressional District, flipping a safely Republican seat after the Republican nominee faced backlash over offensive YouTube videos.