Colin Allred Tells Us Why He Should Be The Next Senator From Texas

The following is part of an interview Newsweek did with Texas Senate candidate Colin Allred:

 It's been over three decades since a Democrat has won statewide in Texas. Why do you think this midterm could be the moment that changes and a Democrat wins?

I think Texas is in many ways, maybe the biggest test for Democrats. If we can compete here, if we can build the coalition that we need here, then we can do it anywhere. And so I think it also forces the Republicans in Texas, who have taken my great state and who have gone so far and been so extreme, it forces them to defend some of the things that I think are really indefensible that they've done here.

I'm a fourth generation Texan, my boys are fifth generation Texans. I know who we are, I know what's important to Texans and I want to fight for my state and I know that there are so many folks out there who are hoping that somebody's going to see them at some point. Because there are a lot of Texans who are working harder and harder for less. They feel like nobody's listening to them. No one sees them. I talk to them all the time. When I'm working in restaurants, which I've been doing, when I'm on construction sites, which I've been going to, I want to go to barber shops, and I want to be a voice for those folks. We can win here, and when we do, I think it'll be something that the entire country can pay attention to.

This is your second go around, you ran in 2024 unsuccessfully against Senator Ted Cruz. I think some would ask, why do you expect a different result going into 2026?

We ran against some pretty strong headwinds in the last election. And I'm proud that we outran or outperformed whatever you want to say, our presidential ticket, dramatically around the state and in some areas where Democrats have really been struggling, like in the Valley, with huge differences, winning counties and flipping counties that Trump was winning as well. But I also felt really strongly that we needed to refocus and recenter around working people and around what they're going through. And that's my story. No one has to tell me about it. I don't have to read a white paper about it, I was raised by a single mother here in Dallas who was a public school teacher. I grew up struggling, growing up, going to our public schools, knowing exactly what folks are going through right now. I made my living by showering after work instead of before it like a lot of working folks do. As a football player, that's how I paid for my college time and made it to the NFL.

I want to go fight for these working folks and re-center our politics around them, but also our policy. Because every Texan I talk to feels like they're working harder and harder for less. Like they are spending less time with their kids. They are swimming against the stream and no one is seeing them. No one is helping them. While the stock market is setting records, working people are bringing home less. And they were promised in the last election that their costs were going to go down, that inflation was going to go away on day one. They'd get an economy back where they thought that they could get ahead. And they were lied to. They were just flat out lied to, this big bust of a bill that they passed, it's one of the biggest wealth transfers from working people to the wealthy in American history.

We've seen outright corruption, the kind that we've just never really experienced in the modern era in this country. And working people are noticing this. And I think we have to speak directly to them. That's how we win, but I think it's also how we bring the country to a better place.

You just touched on corruption and actually that was my next question. I know you unveiled this 12-point plan. Could you just give us some of the highlights of that and why do you think that's particularly important in this election cycle?

I feel really strongly about this, that corruption is not just bad, it's not just wrong, but that it also hurts people, that it hurts working people in particular. It comes in many different forms, but this is the first of actually a multi-part plan that we'll be putting out. It's about fixing our elections and also trying to fix what I think is a broken Congress.

It does important things like banning gerrymandering. I think we can all see how that is affecting the country. I was a voting rights lawyer before I ever ran for Congress, and I hate gerrymandering. I think it leaves us with more extreme elected officials who are responsible and responsive to only a very small sliver of their primary electorate. I think if you look at the House of Representatives and wonder why it's so broken, you can point a lot of that to gerrymandering.

I also think we need to have much stronger ethics rules in place. It's ridiculous to me that members of Congress are trading stocks. In six years in Congress, I never traded a single stock, because I had insider information. It's an inherent conflict of interest. Trying to get secret money out of our politics, stop the revolving door that we have going on with elected officials and lobbyists. And also just seeing and showing to folks that this corruption shows up in the bills that are passed that are then creating loopholes for special interests while you're getting screwed. That's what we're seeing from folks like John Cornyn for years. So, to me, for us to unrig what I consider to be a rigged economy, we also have to unrig what I considered to be rigged system, and that means taking on corruption as well.

Trump and a lot of Republicans seem to be using this moment to push for a crackdown on left-wing groups or leftist ideology. There was also the cancelation of Jimmy Kimmel's show this week, which got a lot of attention. How should Democrats be responding to those actions from the administration and many Republicans?

I think it's very simple. We have to stand up for the Constitution. I feel this very strongly, that this is not about the individual being targeted. It never has been. In our entire history, it's never been about the person who's being targeted and their speech. It's always been about that we as a country have committed ourselves to the idea of free speech. That's always the ground that we should defend, and regardless of who it is, or often times even what they said. Throughout our history we've stood up for this idea that I may disagree with everything you said, but I'll fight to the death for your right to say it and that's part of having a vibrant democracy. So to me as we fight this, we fight right now on the grounds that every American is infused with, that in this democracy we have freedom of speech and in this country we don't have to worry that you cannot criticize the administration. That here in the United States, we're the land of the free and the home of the brave. And that we should be civil in our discourse, but we're not always going to see that. And those rights are not negotiable.

To me, I think that this is something that I feel very, very strongly about. That when you see one right being taken away, every other right is always in danger as well. And we have to fight, I think really hard, to make sure we adhere ourselves to the demands of our Constitution, which is that we do protect freedom of speech, that we have a culture and a belief in vigorous debate, and that sometimes we're going to disagree strongly, but that we're never going to allow ourselves to have a government coming down, cracking down on people for what they're saying. I think that's the grounds we have to fight on. I believe that that's what most people think. And I believe that any overreach is not what people want.

Another big issue that's been causing tensions within the Democratic Party is the issue of the Gaza war. What is your position on how the U.S. should be responding to that? Have you or would you accept money from AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee)? Some Democrats are swearing it off.

I think what's happening in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank is a tragedy, and we need to have this conflict end as quickly as possible for the hostages to come home. One of the most important roles is what comes next. And to me that has to be maintaining and building towards two independent states, a secure, safe, democratic, and Jewish Israeli state next to an independent and sovereign Palestinian state. That to me has always been U.S. policy, but also in some ways, because of how tragic this period has been, that presents almost a time to reassess as to whether or not this is something that we think we can do. And to me, this is still the only viable option going forward.

With regards to things like AIPAC, listen, they endorsed Ted Cruz in the last election. They've endorsed John Cornyn in this election. I'm not expecting—my job is to talk to Texans about what I think is in our national interest, what I can do to try and bring this conflict to an end, but also to create a lasting peace. I've worked on this in Congress, I was on the Foreign Affairs Committee. I've told Bibi Netanyahu to his face that I think he's doing the wrong thing. I think part of supporting Israel, which I do, is supporting them in saying when they're doing something that you think is not in their interest, or in our interest, or in the regional interest. And that's what I think is going on right now. We have to bring this conflict to an end, and I think we have a productive role in ensuring that what comes next and the day after has to be something that's moving us back towards a two-state solution instead of away from it. 

New Poll Shows The Texas Senate Race Is Very Close

The chart above reflects the results of the Emerson College Poll -- done between October 18th and 21st of 815 likely voters in Texas, with a 3.4 point margin of error. 

Will Texas Voters Kick Ted Cruz Out Of The Senate?

Texas is a red state, but Republican Ted Cruz is very unpopular - and this year he's in the closest race of his life. He could actually lose! Here's how Olivia Messer and Billy Begala at MSNBC see the Texas Senate race:

There’s a reason no Democrat has accomplished a statewide victory in Texas since 1994.

Pulling off such an upset would require a uniquely talented politician running an almost perfect campaign. That candidate would need to display discipline, calm and poise. Be telegenic and quick on the feet. The candidate would need to be thoroughly Texan and have an identity infused with elements of the state’s cultural zeitgeist. The person would need to run in a halfway decent national political environment. And even with all of those boxes checked, that rare Democrat would still need to square off against an extraordinarily disliked Republican running a lackluster campaign without much support from the person's own colleagues.

Enter: Rep. Colin Allred.

Allred’s remarkable debate performance Tuesday spawned a flurry of Instagram slides, TikTok videos and X posts. Both in Texas and nationwide, news feeds have been flush this week with clips of the former professional football player rebuking Sen. Ted Cruz for hiding in a “supply closet” during the attempted insurrection at the U.S. Capitol — a riot by a mob that Cruz himself helped whip up. Others showed him repeatedly referencing the time Cruz flew to Cancun, Mexico, as hundreds of Texans died during the middle of a winter freeze, or hammering him on his abortion stance — an issue critical to white female voters who have been abandoning the GOP in droves. 

But an impressive debate performance alone is not enough for a Democrat to win a state like Texas. However, polls, fundraising and a changing political climate have all looked promising for Allred. Today, Texas Democrats are in an extraordinary situation, one that has proved elusive over the past three decades: They have an actual chance of winning a statewide race.

As of Thursday, FiveThirtyEight’s average of polls had Cruz stuck at 48.4%. A Morning Consult survey released Thursday showed Allred down by just 1 point. An internal memo from the Senate Leadership Fund — the Mitch McConnell-aligned super PAC focused on electing Republicans to the Senate — had Cruz up by only 1 point. A different polling memo released by the National Republican Senatorial Committee omitted any information on the race. If the numbers were too bad to share, that’s certainly a worrying sign for Cruz. . . .

The last time Texans had a race this close, this late in the election, was Cruz’s re-election bid in 2018, in which he narrowly beat O’Rourke by less than 3 points. But that year, the senator’s polling looked rosier then than it does today. In the world of campaign politics, any incumbent stuck under 50% in the polls when votes are days away is leaving the door open to a loss. . . .

To get to 50% + 1, Allred will need to run up the score in urban centers, especially among voters of color. He’ll also need to persuade swing-y South Texas Hispanic voters and he’ll need to do that while maintaining the favor of white, college-educated suburban voters.

It’s a huge mountain to climb — and one that hasn’t been summited in 30 years. But if Allred doesn’t emerge victorious, he’s still carried Democrats further than any other candidate in recent memory.

Presidential And Senate Races Are Closer Than Expected In Texas

 

The charts above are from the University of Texas at Austin Texas Politics Project Poll -- done between October 2nd and 10th of a random sample of 1,091 likely Texas voters, with a 2.97 point margin of error.

New Polls Show The Texas Senate Race Is Close

This chart reflects the result of the New York Times / Siena College Poll -- done between September 29th and October 6th of a random sample of 617 voters in Texas, with a 4.8 point margin of error.

This chart reflects the result of the Marist Poll -- done between Ocyober 3rd and 7th of a random sample of 1,500 Texas adults, with a 3.2 point margin of error.

 

Another Poll Shows The Texas Senate Race Is Very Close

 

The charts above are from the Clean and Prosperous America / Public Policy Polling survey -- done on September 25th and 26th of 759 registered Texas voters, with a 3.5 point margin of error.

MC Poll Has Allred By 1 Point Over Cruz In Texas

The chart above reflects the results of the Morning Consult Poll -- done between September 9th and 18th of 2,716 likely voters in Texas, with a 2 point margin of error. 

This is a respected poll. It shows that the Senate race in Texas is a lot closer than most of the pundits thought. It's basically a dead heat, and it's going to boil down to which side gets their voters out.

I think it probably still slightly favors Cruz, but if some Republicans think they have the race in the bag because Texas is a red state, and they stay home, Allred (and maybe even Harris) could win.

How can this be in red state Texas? For one thing, Cruz is not well liked by Texans. He has a less than 50% favorable rating. He also suffers because of his stand on abortion. And he has voted twice against a bill to assure access to IVF procedures.

Cruz also voted against a border bill that would have significantly reduced undocumented immigration - just so Trump could keep it as a campaign issue. 

Allred voted for the border bill, voted for the bill to assure access to IVF, and supports reproductive freedom for women (which is popular even in Texas).

The Texas Race For The Senate Has Drawn Much Closer

The chart above reflects the results of the University of Houston Hobby School Texas Trends Survey -- done between August 5th and 16th of 1,365 likely Texas voters, with a 2.65 point margin of error.

Note that Allred trails Cruz by only 2.1 points. That's within the poll's margin of error!

Allred Is Within 3 Points Of Cruz In New Texas Poll

The chart above is from the Texas Southern University Texas Trends Survey -- done between June 20th and July 1st of a sample of 1,484 likely Texas voters, with a 2.3 point margin of error. 

Allred Is Within 5 Points Of Cruz In Texas Senate Race

These charts reflect the results of a recent University of Texas at Tyler Poll -- done between May 10th and 21st of 1,413 registered Texas voters, with a 3 point margin of error.

The results should please Democrat Colin Allred. Just shortly after announcing his candidacy, he is only 5 points behind incumbent Republican Ted Cruz. And 14% of voters say they don't know which they'll vote for.

Add to this the fact that Cruz has a negative 8 point favorability rating, while Allred has a positive 2 point rating. While most Texans already have a solid opinion of Cruz, about 48% say they don't know enough yet about Allred. Allred has several months to define himself to the voters.

It will still be tough to beat Cruz in red Texas, but I think these numbers show that Allred has a reasonable chance to win.