Colin Allred enters U.S. Senate race in Texas

Colin Allred Reenters the Texas Senate Race Following Loss to Ted Cruz

Former Representative Colin Allred is making a comeback in the Texas Senate race, just eight months after falling short against Ted Cruz.

In a video released on Tuesday, Allred, who successfully flipped a traditionally Republican district in 2018, committed to challenging “politicians like [Texas Sen.] John Cornyn and [Attorney General] Ken Paxton,” branding them as “too corrupt to care about us and too weak to fight for us.” He also unveiled an “anti-corruption plan” that he intends to champion throughout his campaign.

Democrats are cautiously optimistic that a contentious Republican primary—featuring Cornyn and Paxton, who has survived a series of scandals during his tenure—could create a viable opportunity for the party in a state that has long been a Republican stronghold. Current polling indicates Cornyn has the edge, yet the Democratic landscape is shaping up to be more competitive than in 2024, when Allred faced little opposition in the Senate Democratic primary. The presence of a more crowded primary field could complicate the Democrats’ efforts to flip a state that has remained reliably red.

Last week, former astronaut Terry Virts declared his candidacy, taking aim at both major parties in his announcement video. Representative Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) has expressed interest in joining the race, and former Representative Beto O’Rourke, who has previously run unsuccessfully for governor, has been actively engaging voters at well-attended town halls. State Representative James Talarico told POLITICO that he is “having conversations about how I can best serve Texas.”

Allred, a former NFL player turned congressman, leaned heavily into his personal narrative during his launch video. He recounted the story of purchasing a home for his mother once he turned professional, stating, “you shouldn’t have to have a son in the NFL to own a home.”

“People who play by the rules and maintain their integrity just can’t seem to get ahead, while those who cut corners are thriving,” Allred added. “Washington is broken. The system is rigged. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Throughout my six years in Congress, I never accepted a dime of corporate PAC money and never traded a single stock.”

Transforming Texas into a Democratic stronghold has long been a goal for the party, which believes that the state’s increasing diversity can eventually turn the tide. However, former President Trump’s significant gains among Latino voters, particularly in the Rio Grande Valley, pose a significant hurdle to this ambition. According to a New York Times analysis, of the 10 counties that shifted most dramatically to the right from the 2012 to 2024 presidential elections, seven are located in Texas, including considerable shifts in heavily Latino districts.

Initial polling indicates that Allred leads Paxton by a narrow one-point margin in a direct matchup, although he trails Cornyn by six points. The polling, commissioned by the Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC affiliated with GOP leadership, highlights Paxton’s vulnerabilities in a general election, while also showing Cornyn losing to Paxton in the GOP primary.

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