El Paso GOP voters face choice between convicted former judge and little-known ex-Border Patrol agent in District 16 congressional runoff
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Convicted former Judge Manuel J. Barraza is counting on name recognition and his legal background to propel him to the November general election as the Republican nominee for Texas’ 16th Congressional District.
His opponent in the GOP runoff, retired Border Patrol agent Adam Bauman, has declined repeated interview requests from El Paso Matters. He has relied heavily on stylized social media videos that offer little detail about his policy positions in his campaign.
Barraza, 70, and Bauman, 49, were the top two vote-getters in the seven-candidate March primary, taking 18% and 24% of the votes, respectively, and will now face off in the May 26 runoff. The winner will advance to face incumbent U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar on Nov. 3. Escobar, who is seeking her fifth term, was unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Early voting for the runoff election begins Monday, May 18, and ends Friday, May 22.
“I believe I’m a more appealing candidate, because peo…