Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez has served four terms as the top law enforcement officer in Val Verde County, Texas, a sprawling rural territory that shares 110 miles of border with Mexico. Martinez says his father, a staunch Democrat, raised him and his nine siblings to serve their community.

Martinez describes himself as “Catholic, pro-gun, pro-life” and committed to his father’s party. His relationships in Val Verde county have repeatedly propelled him into office. But this year, Martinez's victory is less certain because some in Val Verde County don’t think he’s tough enough on immigration — even though securing the border is not a local sheriff’s responsibility.

Martinez’s run for office provides a glimpse at how new patterns of immigration along the border have coincided with, if not driven, changing attitudes among voters who live there. Some communities once considered Democratic strongholds have begun to turn red, a trend bolstered by Republican efforts to court Latino voters.

Those efforts are changing politics in Val Verde County. A political action committee called Project Red TX has backed a candidate named Rogelio “Roger” Hernandez to run against Martinez. Since 2018, the PAC has been recruiting and financially supporting Republican candidates in local races across majority Latino border counties.

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