Hello everyone, I'm Ricardo Villarreal. I was born and raised in Laredo, but I also spent plenty of time at my father's ranch in Nuevo Laredo.  After graduating from United High School, I attended medical school in Guadalajara, Mexico—an unexpected path, but the best choice given the high cost of U.S. education.

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After practicing medicine for a time, I returned to Texas to earn an MBA in healthcare management in San Antonio. My clinical experience in Mexico gave me valuable insight into hospital operations and deepened my interest in leadership and organizational development.

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Having belonged to junior ROTC and post 9/11, I felt a strong calling to serve my country. After completing my MBA, I joined the U.S. Army Reserve as an officer in the Medical Service Corps. Balancing civilian healthcare work with military service taught me leadership, discipline, and the importance of teamwork in complex systems.

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Over the span of my career, I’ve held roles ranging from front-line clinician to executive leadership, heading enterprise projects, shaping policy, and driving measurable improvements in patient outcomes. My passion lies in continuous improvement and collaboration—getting to the root cause of problems, working alongside people from diverse backgrounds toward a shared goal of making things better than we found them.

 

After completing my military service, I used the GI Bill to pursue additional graduate degrees in Leadership, Public Affairs (Policy), and Public Leadership, focusing on policy analysis, innovation, ethics, and strategy. These experiences strengthened my understanding of how leadership and policy can create lasting community impact.

 

In recent years just as being a physician or serving in the military, I have felt a calling to continue to serve. To that end, I’ve worked with nonprofit organizations in Laredo, San Antonio and at the state level advocating for public policy changes that our communities need and deserve. I also ran for Congress in 2022, where I received the endorsement from the San Antonio Express News in a six person primary where I made the runoff. 

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Public service is not easy—but I do it because I believe in being a force for positive change. I believe in setting the example to my two kids in that we can either complain or get up and do something about it, that's why I am running for Congress again. I know running again will be a challenge but I learned the value of hard work from my father’s dedication on our family ranch, and I bring that same commitment.

 

Serving as your representative I promise to give it my all—to listen, to lead, and to work tirelessly for a better future for you and your families. I humbly ask for your support.