SAN ANTONIO – It's a challenge few politicians campaigning for Congress across the country face: a U.S. House district encompassing close to 48,000-square miles.
In District 23, Democrat Pete Gallego is trying to hang on to the only contested congressional district in Texas and is facing Republican Will Hurd.
Beyond the challenges they face from each other, they both face the challenge of getting the word out to voters in a huge district.
Gallego said his message is simple.
"I try to be uplifting," Gallego said. "I try to tell people what I've done. I try to run on my record."
Hurd said he is keeping it simple.
"People care about the same things," Hurd said. "They care about jobs and the economy."
But getting their messages out by traveling District 23 to campaign is hard to do.
"It's a big district," Gallego said. "You know, it's bigger than 29 states."
That is correct.
The 23rd congressional district in Texas is bigger than 29 U.S. states.
And not just small states like New Hampshire and Rhode Island.
District 23 is bigger than Illinois, Florida and New York.
Each congressional district has about 700,000 people, but this one stretches that population from El Paso to San Antonio.
In it are small counties like Loving County, population 71 and large counties like Bexar, population 1.8 million.
District 23 is also in the middle of the debate over the Texas border.
"District 23 has 825 miles of the border," Hurd said.
And that is a lot of miles to cover for candidates who are trying to show a diverse group of voters; rural, urban and suburban, that they're the right one to represent their interests.
Gallego said knowing the district is important.
"You take care of the district," Gallego said. "The district comes first before anything else."
Hurd said he hopes to represent the views of his constituents.
"People know that I'm doing this to be a representative, not just a congressman," Hurd said.
A congressman in one of the biggest districts in the country.