Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar filed for re-election Wednesday as a Democrat and told reporters that he had no intention to retire or switch parties after President Donald Trump unexpectedly announced pardons for him and his wife.

“It came as a surprise,” Cuellar told a small group of reporters about the pardon, Politico reported. “I want to thank President Trump for this. … Now we clear the air. Nothing has changed, and we’re going to be ready to win re-election again.”

Trump’s announcement immediately sparked speculation that the longtime congressman might finally join the GOP after years of recruitment efforts or choose to step aside — a shift that would give Republicans a stronger chance to flip his competitive Rio Grande Valley seat.

But Cuellar quickly assured senior Democrats he would not switch parties, according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations.

He also filed his reelection paperwork with Texas officials on Wednesday.

“Nothing has changed — I’m a good old conservative Democrat,” Cuellar said Wednesday.

Trump claimed on Truth Social that Cuellar’s prosecution stemmed from his criticism of former President Joe Biden’s immigration policy.

Cuellar and his wife, Imelda, were indicted last year on more than a dozen corruption charges, including bribery.

“Henry, I don’t know you, but you can sleep well tonight — Your nightmare is finally over!” Trump posted.

The clemency comes as Trump faces backlash over his use of the pardon power, including pardons granted to officials within his own party.

Trump has spent years accusing Biden of “weaponization” of law enforcement, and the Cuellar pardon offered the White House a chance to argue that concern crosses party lines.

But the move also complicates Republicans’ long effort to unseat Cuellar, who remains near the top of the GOP’s 2026 target list.

A top Republican recruit entered the race Tuesday.

Trump’s praise of Cuellar and the congressman’s immediate declaration that he is running for reelection surprised Republicans who have been trying to defeat him for years.

Rep. Pete Sessions said Cuellar’s decision to run again shows “there was not a quid pro quo” with Trump over the pardon.

“Very interesting,” Sessions added. “Very interesting.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Wednesday backed Trump’s decision to issue a preemptive pardon for Cuellar, suggesting the corruption case was so weak it likely would have fallen apart in court.

“I don’t know why the president decided to do this, [but] I think the outcome was exactly the right outcome,” Jeffries said in an interview with CNN.

Jeffries has previously criticized many of Trump’s other pardons as evidence of corruption, but took a softer stance in Cuellar’s case and questioned the legitimacy of the charges.

“Listen, the reality is [that] this indictment was very thin to begin with, in my view,” Jeffries told CNN.

“The charges were eventually going to be dismissed — if not at the trial court level [then] by the Supreme Court, as they’ve repeatedly done in instances just like this.”

Cuellar said he has not spoken with Trump and received no advance notice of the pardon.

But he plans to attend the White House Christmas party and thank the president personally.

He also vowed to remain a Democrat and predicted he will win reelection next November.

“This is a conservative district, and I will win it,” he said.