Ted Cruz begs and pleads for donations as Dem challenger’s campaign heats up
History is repeating itself with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).
During the 2018 midterms, the far-right senator pleaded with fellow Republicans to step up their support of his reelection campaign and warned that Democratic challenger Beto O'Rourke had a realistic chance of winning. Cruz defeated O'Rourke in the end, but only by roughly 2 percent — which was a shocker in a state where Democrats typically struggle in statewide races.
Now, as he seeks a third term, Cruz is sounding the alarm about another Democratic challenger: Colin Allred. A University of Texas, Tyler poll released in early March found Texas' 2024 U.S. Senate race to be a dead heat, with Cruz and Allred tied at 41 percent.
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During a Wednesday, April 3 appearance on Sean Hannity's show, Cruz begged and pleaded for donations and warned Fox News viewers that Republicans shouldn't take Allred's campaign lightly.
Cruz argued, "The Democrats are coming after me. They are gonna spend more than $100 million this year. George Soros is already spending millions of dollars in the state of Texas…. My opponent, a liberal Democrat named Colin Allred, is outraising Beto O’Rourke, my last opponent, 3-to-1. They are flooding millions of dollars into Texas, and the reason is simple. You remember my last reelect, it was a three-point race. I won by 2.6 percent."
The senator continued, "And so, (Senate Majority Leader) Chuck Schumer, his view is: He floods millions into Texas, he gains three points — and that's how they win."
A Marist poll released in late March was more favorable to Cruz than the University of Texas, Tyler poll: According to Marist, Cruz leads Allred by 6 percent. But Cruz, on Fox News, sounded like he is leaving nothing to chance.
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The New Republic's Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling, in an article published on April 4, reports, "Allred was originally predicted to be a longshot candidate behind Cruz. After all, it's been 33 years since a Democrat held a statewide position in the traditionally deep-red state. But Allred has quickly picked up steam in the race."
If Allred did manage to pull off a victory in November, it would be a political bombshell given how much Republicans have dominated Texas politics.
Texas' major urban centers lean Democrat — Austin, Houston, El Paso, Dallas, San Antonio — and Democrats perform well in some of Texas' congressional districts. But an abundance of rural counties have given Republicans an advantage in statewide races in the Lone Star State.
In 2020's presidential election, Donald Trump carried Texas by roughly 6 percent — a smaller margin of victim than the double-dig wins that GOP presidential nominees had typically enjoyed in Texas.
Houghtaling emphasizes that Cruz's positions are way out of the mainstream.
"Cruz's rhetoric has also veered the state toward political extremes that don't necessarily align with what the majority of Texans want," the New Republic journalist observes. "He backed Trump's claim that the 2020 presidential election was rigged, supported a draconian abortion ban, and has done practically nothing to support IVF access within the state. He has also vehemently opposed gun control measures in the state even after lone shooters killed 21 people at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, 23 people in an El Paso Walmart, and 27 people at a church in Sutherland Springs, in separate shootings."
Houghtaling adds, "The Sutherland Springs attack is the state’s deadliest mass shooting ever."
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