his father, terry a. canales, was the first hispanic state representative to represent jim wells county, serving from 1973 to 1977. his sister gabriella "gabi" canales served from 2002 to 2004. he is also the sixth member of his extended family to serve in the texas house of representatives. perhaps the most recognized of rep. canales' family is his great uncle, josé tomás canales, a brownsville democrat who served a total of five terms between 1905 and 1921. he was a founding member of the league of united latin american citizens (lulac), and is most famous for defending the hispanic community against the injustices perpetrated by the texas rangers.