Colin Allred says Texas Republican Party is seeing an ‘internal civil war’

Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas) said he thinks his Senate campaign against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) can achieve victory because the Texas Republican Party is in disarray, and Democrats can pull off an upset in the Lone Star State.

“I actually think that what we’re seeing is an internal civil war in Texas among … [the] Republican Party, and it’s going in the direction of the folks who I don’t think reflect the mass majority of Texans, right?” Allred said Sunday in an MSNBC “The Weekend” interview. “We’re getting away from the George W. Bush’s and the Rick Perry’s and towards this extremely far right.”

Texas GOP leaders purged several incumbents — namely those who had previously defied them — through primary campaign efforts, especially targeting those who backed efforts to impeach state Attorney General Ken Paxton (R). Paxton was accused of using his office for political favors. He was impeached but not convicted.

Allred, who cruised to victory in the Democratic primary last week, has maintained successful fundraising efforts for his race against Cruz. He nearly raised more than Cruz in 2023, but he is still slightly behind the senator, according to Federal Election Commission filings from January.

The Dallas congressman predicted that the right-wing shift of Texas Republicans is tearing his opponent’s party apart, and that it could leave an opening for a Democrat to get elected.

“I mean, we had some very, very conservative state legislators who were primaried to their right by folks who were running on, you know, stuff that Attila the Hun would have felt, you know, comfortable with, right?” Allred said.

“So, let’s be very clear. They’re going way too far,” Allred continued. “And Ted Cruz is one of the avatars of that. He’s been one of the leaders of that. But I’m a different candidate, and I’m a different, you know, problem for Senator Cruz.” 

Allred, a former NFL player turned lawmaker, cited his record of bipartisanship as the key to connecting with Texas voters.

“I’ve been the most bipartisan member of the entire Texas delegation. I work very hard at reaching across the aisle,” he said. “I have real bona fides in terms of, you know, being supported in my last two elections by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce because I’ve been pro-business, for example. So, it’s going to be harder for them.”

Cruz narrowly won reelection in 2018 against former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas), winning by about 2.6 percent. The Cook Political Report has ranked the 2024 race as “likely” Republican, but Democrats are putting pressure on Cruz as one of the party’s few targets to potentially flip a Senate seat.