Rep. Tony Gonzales, a Texas Republican, narrowly eked out a win Tuesday against pro-gun YouTuber Brandon Herrera in a contest that was a proxy fight for how House Republicans should be governing in Washington.

Gonzales defeated Herrera with 50.7 percent of the vote in a primary runoff, according to the Associated Press, to win the GOP nomination in Texas’s 23rd District, which runs along the U.S.-Mexico border. Democrats thought they would have a better shot at poaching the seat if Herrera had won the nomination because of his far-right politics.

The district leans conservative, and Gonzales is favored to win the general election in November against Democrat Santos Limon, a civil engineer and political newcomer.

Gonzales drew the ire of some of his House GOP colleagues because he sided multiple times with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Democrats to keep the government open and to approve aid for Ukraine. Gonzales also supported a bipartisan gun-control bill in response to a mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Tex., inside his district.

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Herrera calls himself the “AKGuy” and an “entrepreneur, Second Amendment activist, and social media personality,” according to his website. In a highly unusual move, he was endorsed by hard-line Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and members of the far-right House Freedom Caucus.

The defeat of a House incumbent in a primary is a rare event. Although Gonzales ultimately prevailed, the close margin illustrates the growing rift among House Republicans, between those more inclined to compromise and govern and those who want to dramatically reshape the role of the federal government and tear things down. House Republicans are fighting to expand their slender majority in November and have been riven by infighting over their direction and agenda.

In another high-profile Texas race, retired military commander Jay Furman was projected to win the GOP primary runoff in the 28th Congressional District, according to the AP, defeating Lazaro “Larry” Garza Jr., a rancher. Furman will advance to the general election in November against indicted congressman Henry Cuellar (D), who is seeking his 11th term.

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Furman faces a challenge in trying to unseat Cuellar, who for nearly two decades has represented the South Texas district, which stretches along the U.S.-Mexico border from Laredo to the Rio Grande Valley and up to San Antonio. In 2022, he handily won reelection with 57 percent of the vote.

The Democrat has lately been embroiled in legal controversy: Cuellar and his wife were indicted this month on charges that they accepted $600,000 in bribes from a bank and an oil company controlled by the Azerbaijan government. They have denied wrongdoing.

Patrick Svitek contributed to this report.

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