A Texas Congressional Race Has Become All About Quinceañeras

Bobby Pulido serenades Chloee Molina at her quinceañera in Alice, Texas last month. ALICE, Texas -- A man in a cowboy hat and boots entered the dance hall and drew loud cheers as he began to sing. Attendees took videos of him swaying beside the night's honoree, a 15-year-old girl in a crown and glittering ivory ball gown celebrating her quinceañera. He then called her parents to the floor to pose for pictures. "My name is Bobby Pulido and I'm running for Congress in November," he said before leaving. "I appreciate your support. God bless you." That's a normal weekend night for Pulido as of late. He delivered a similar message the day before at a quinceañera in Mission, about two hours away. And again, this time in Spanish, at another one nearby later that evening. What began as a clever response to a dig from his political opponent has morphed into something much bigger. Pulido, a Latin Grammy Award-winning Tejano singer vying to represent Texas' 15th congressional district, spends most of his Friday and Saturday nights bouncing around South Texas performing at the traditional Hispanic celebrations of a girl's 15th birthday. And there's no end in sight to the tour. It all started in early March when Pulido's opponent suggested the Democrat was better suited to entertain at parties than serve in Congress. "This election isn't about who you want performing at your niece's quinceañera. It's about who you trust with your family's future," Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz said in a video posted to social media shortly after Pulido won the Democratic primary. Pulido shot back a few days later with his own video: "In South Texas, a quinceañera isn't just a pachanga. It's a rite of passage that brings family and neighbors together. And honestly that's exactly what this campaign is about." He then made the fateful decision to encourage families in his district to message him if they wanted to invite him to their quinceañeras. Almost immediately, Pulido's direct messages on all social-media platforms were flooded with requests, according to his campaign manager, Abel Prado. The campaign created a Google form, and within 36 hours, it had received more than 1,500 requests. That number is now past 2,700. Prado now jokes that he's gone from being a campaign manager to becoming a "quinceañera logistics coordinator." Pulido started attending celebrations in mid-March and since then, his campaign has fine-tuned the appearances. Pulido enters the venue singing "Hermoso Cariño" by iconic Mexican mariachi singer Vicente Fernández. He then performs "Desvelado," which was Pulido's debut single in 1995 and has more than 519 million streams on Spotify. He closes by gifting the birthday girl a pink hat that reads "Make Quinceañeras Great Again," signing it and posing for photos with her and her parents. The appearance is free, though Pulido's campaign asks the families to share a QR code attendees can scan to input their contact information so they invite them to other events. Pulido, a father of four, said his new side gig fits with a campaign message centered on families and their finances, since constituents in the majority-Hispanic district are having more difficulty keeping traditions like quinceañeras alive. "They save money all year or two years just to make that night special," he said. "So for them to invite me, I think, speaks volumes." Pulido is facing criticism and scrutiny related to his decadeslong music career. The New York Post reported that Pulido performed with a bandmate who is a registered sex offender convicted of indecent contact with a child. Pulido's campaign manager said the singer didn't previously know about the bandmate's criminal history. Pulido has also been criticized for past social-media posts and a 2010 music video in which he appeared as a character depicting lewd behavior. Pulido said the video was a satire and the character was based on a scandal at the time involving merengue singer Elvis Crespo. A spokesman for the De La Cruz campaign issued a statement citing reports of Pulido's associations and social-media posts, and said families of the quinceañera celebrants "deserve to know" about his past. Amy Saenz, 18, filled out the form to get Pulido to attend her sister Jimena's quinceañera in Edinburg as a joke. Her mom and aunts were encouraging her to do it but she didn't think it would happen. Neither did her father, Jorge Saenz, 47. "Whether he was campaigning or even if he was just still a musician, it's nice either way. I appreciate it. He took time out of his schedule to do this," Jorge Saenz said. It won't necessarily translate to a vote in November. "I still have to pay attention to what Pulido's offering and what he's bringing to the table," he said. The quinceañeras Google form is now being used for all sorts of requests, from bar mitzvahs to new businesses opening. "It's really turned into: Can you come spend time with our family?" Prado said. On the night of the quinceañera in Alice, Pulido made a second stop at a birthday party at the Jim Wells County fairground. This one wasn't for a 15-year-old but for two sisters who were turning 60 and 70. The sisters, wearing leopard print dresses and cowboy boots, beamed as Pulido performed "Desvelado" for the fourth time in 24 hours.