TX-SEN: Ted Cruz and Colin Allred to meet in the only debate in the Texas Senate race

DALLAS (AP) — Republican Sen. Ted Cruz and Democratic Rep. Colin Allred will meet Tuesday night in the only debate of their Texas Senate race that could help determine which party controls the U.S. Senate.

Nationally, Democrats view Texas as one of their few potential pickup chances in the Senate this year, while much of their attention is focused on defending seats that are crucial to their thin majority, including in Montana, Ohio and West Virginia.

Cruz has urged Republicans to take Texas seriously amid signs that he is in another competitive race. The last time Cruz was on the ballot in 2018, he only narrowly won reelection over challenger Beto O’Rourke.

The debate presents Allred, a three-term congressman from Dallas and former NFL linebacker, with a chance to boost his name identification to a broad Texas audience. Allred has made protecting abortion rights a centerpiece of his campaign and has been sharply critical of the state’s abortion ban, which is one of the strictest in the nation. The issue has been a winning one for Democrats, even in red states like Kentucky and Kansas, ever since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in 2022 to strip away constitutional protections for abortion.



https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/10/15/nation/ted-cruz-colin-allred-meet-only-debate-texas-senate-race/