Pete Peña Gallego (born December 2, 1961) is an American lawyer, politician, and higher education leader who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 23rd congressional district from 2013 to 2015.

Gallego defeated freshman incumbent Quico Canseco of San Antonio for Texas's 23rd congressional district seat in the November 6, 2012, general election.

[4] After graduating from law school, Gallego became an assistant in the office of the state attorney general, before he returned to his hometown of Alpine to become a prosecutor.

[5] In the Texas House, Gallego served on the board of directors of the National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO), and four terms as Chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus (MALC), a caucus of Texas representatives who are of Mexican-American descent or who serve a significant Mexican-American constituency.

[10] Gallego was known for carrying major legislation in the areas of criminal justice, indigent defense, capital punishment, wrongful convictions, crime victims’ rights, the judiciary, and economic development.

[25] Gallego attempted to reclaim his seat in 2016, he won the Democratic nomination but on November 8th 2016 he again lost to Hurd, this time by 3,051 Votes.

At least two other Democrats also considered running for their party nomination: Judith Canales, a former officer of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development from Eagle Pass, and Jay Hulings, a graduate of Harvard Law School and an assistant U.S. attorney in San Antonio.

[27] In June 2018, a special election was triggered in Texas State Senate District 19 after incumbent Carlos Uresti resigned.

[29][30] In May 2020 Chancellor Brian McCall announced Gallego as the sole finalist to become the 13th president of Sul Ross State (SRSU).

In June, the Texas State University System Board of Regents confirmed him as the first SRSU alum to serve as president.

The university's endowment grew in size, and it awarded more degrees per year, including to Hispanic, minority, and economically-disadvantaged students, while raising its graduation rates.

[36][37][38] Gallego's support for the Affordable Care Act was attacked in advertisements by the Libre Initiative, a conservative Hispanic outreach group.

[39][40] Gallego opposed a Medicare voucher system[41] and supported Medicaid expansion and prescription drug negotiations.

He advocates improved "worker accountability programs, using border security as an economic tool and aiding the current 11 million undocumented individuals in a path to citizenship", writing with several others in an opinion piece in the El Paso Times that, "We can no longer delay immigration reform.

[50] Born in Alpine, Gallego’s family operated a well-known local restaurant which was a political watering hole.

[54] Gallego is a frequent guest columnist in such publications as the Dallas Morning News,[55][56][57] Houston Chronicle,[58] San Antonio Express-News,[59] and Inside Higher Ed.