Colin Allred: The Former Linebacker Taking On Ted Cruz

You may have heard the name Colin Allred and that he wants to beat Senator Ted Cruz in the general election, but who is he? How did he get into politics? Does he have a shot at winning?

Colin Allred is a U.S. Representative serving the 32nd Congressional District of Texas. A member of the Democratic Party, Allred has made significant strides since his election in 2018, unseating a longtime Republican incumbent in a notable political shift for the district.

In Congress, he is known for his bipartisan efforts, particularly in areas like veterans’ affairs, infrastructure development, and gun security.

Born in Dallas, Texas, Allred pursued a dual career in law and professional football. He played five seasons as a linebacker for the NFL’s Tennessee Titans before suffering a career-ending injury. He then earned a law degree and worked in the Obama administration’s Office of General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Allred’s bid to unseat Ted Cruz comes on the heels of his success in flipping a long-red district. In 2018, he unseated Republican Pete Sessions, who had been in Congress since 1997. That victory was widely celebrated by his fellow Democrats, and surely gave him the confidence to unseat Cruz.

Cruz surely dreads his matchup with Allred, as he barely survived his last election against Beto O’Rourke in 2018, which he won by a small margin of 3 percentage points.

“I will say, my race here in Texas is a battleground race,” Cruz said in February. “My last race I won by less than three points because I’m the Democrats’ top target.”

For now, the most recent polls give Cruz a 3-point lead over Allred, but the Democrat has been rapidly closing the gap in the race. Last month, a poll gave Cruz an 11-point lead over Allred.

In terms of money raised, Allred has already surpassed Cruz. According to the Texas Tribune, Cruz has raised $40 million and Allred has raised $41.2 million, but the Republican has $4 million more cash on hand than his challenger.

Allred has positioned himself as a moderate Democrat who has stood up to Biden, particularly on the issue of immigration and border security.

“I stood up to Joe Biden on the border and to extremists like Ted Cruz for preferring chaos to real solutions,” Allred said in an ad.

Democrats see this race as one of the few they can win in the Senate, and Allred’s history of flipping seats gives them hope.

“The greatest advantage that Congressman Allred has is that nobody seems to like Ted Cruz,” said state Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, from San Antonio.