South Texas Congressional Race Shapes Up as Ideological Battleground

A bilingual sign stands outside a polling center at public library ahead of local elections on April 28, 2013, in Austin, Texas. Early voting was due to begin ahead of May 11 statewide county elections. The Democratic and Republican parties were vying for the Latino vote nationwide following President Obama's landslide victory among Hispanic voters in the 2012 election. Photo by John Moore/Getty Images

Monica De La Cruz, the Republican candidate in the redrawn U.S. 15th Congressional District in South Texas, believes that the stark difference between her traditional values and those of her progressive Democratic opponent will be what flips the district to red come November.

De La Cruz will face Democrat Michelle Vallejo in a district that’s heavily Hispanic and traditionally votes blue. Both candidates run small businesses in the district, part of which sits along the Mexican border.