Democrat Colin Allred claims victory, to square off against Ted Cruz for US Senate seat

U.S. Rep. Colin Allred of Dallas claimed victory Tuesday night in the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate. The one-time NFL linebacker turned civil rights lawyer will face off against incumbent Sen. Ted Cruz Nov. 5.

State Sen. Roland Gutierrez of San Antonio, one of two front-runners in a packed contest to pilot the Democratic Party’s effort to unseat the two-time Republican senator, conceded to Allred around 9:40 p.m., claiming just under 17% of the vote at the time of his concession. Allred had secured 60.01% of votes with 30% of state polling stations reporting results.

Allred has represented Dallas’ northeastern suburbs in Congress since 2019. The congressman pitches himself as the party’s best hope to defeat Cruz, who trounced his primary opponents in pursuit of his third term.

Early voting turnout was low among Democrats in Tarrant County compared to 2020, despite the U.S. Senate race’s position near the top of the ticket. (That year, MJ Hegar and Sen. Royce West would advance to a runoff, in hopes of facing U.S. Sen. John Cornyn in November.)

The 2024 Democratic primary race for U.S. Senate was a very low profile affair, said Jim Riddlesperger, a TCU political science professor.

“I don’t think they’re even a blip on the screen right now,” Riddlesperger said.

Allred and Gutierrez separated themselves from a crowded field of primary contenders. Gutierrez, the state senator for District 19 since 2021, positioned himself to Allred’s left over the course of the campaign.

Gutierrez advocated for a single-payer health care system; Allred doesn’t, instead pushing for an expansion of Medicaid. Gutierrez had called for an immediate ceasefire to the Israel-Hamas war; Allred has also urged an end to the violence, but with conditions. Gutierrez, whose district includes Uvalde, had proposed banning all new assault weapons purchases; Allred has been reluctant to propose the same.

Recent polls don’t bode well for either candidates’ chances against Cruz. A February Texas Politics Project poll has the incumbent leading both Democrats by 14 points .

Riddlesperger expects the general election face-off against Cruz to energize the Democratic voter base.

“They’re going to be motivated both by the presidential election, and by the competitive senate election, and by the Democrats’ lingering hope from six years ago that they can finally slay the dragon in Ted Cruz,” he predicted.