Ted Cruz Faces GOP Rebellion in Texas as Republicans Back Opponent

Senator Ted Cruz is facing a growing rebellion within his party as a wave of Texas Republicans rally behind his opponent, Representative Colin Allred.

In interviews with ABC 13 and the Houston Chronicle on Thursday, Allred announced the formation of the Republicans for Allred coalition, which former Republican state Representative Jason Villalba and former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger will chair.

Other members of the coalition include former Dallas mayor and Congressman Steve Bartlett, former state Representative and Chairman of the Texas House Elections Committee Todd Smith, former Congressman Alan Steelman, former Deputy Director of the National Economic Council under President George W. Bush, Marc Sumerlin, and former state Representative Bennett Ratliff.

"This is a serious effort to reach out to Republicans," Kinzinger said in a press release. "You're going to see other folks come out and say 'look, we're going to put slight differences aside because we actually believe in this country and what it stands for like Colin does and unlike Ted Cruz does."

"I am a lifelong Republican. I even served Texas in the Legislature as a Reagan Republican. But our current Senator seems to be more focused on his own ambition or serving the interests of extremists than helping ordinary Texans like me," former State Representative Villaba said in the release.

"My Congressman, Colin Allred, on the other hand, has served North Texas with dignity, respect, and a servant's heart. Colin cares about the kitchen table issues that are important to me and my family. He will never put his own personal gain above Texas. That's why I am proud to endorse him."

Following the announcement, the Cruz campaign dismissed the Republicans for Allred coalition, describing it as a "fake, feel-good vanity project for Allred."

"Adam Kinzinger trying to relaunch his political career in Texas isn't news. This is clearly nothing more than another fake, feel-good vanity project for Allred," a spokesperson for the Cruz campaign told Newsweek.

"You don't have to look any further than the co-chair, Adam Kinzinger, a disgruntled former congressman who is on a vindictive rampage against everyone with an 'R' next to their name to know how deeply unserious and pathetic this is."

Newsweek reached out to the Allred campaign via email for comment.

A number of Republicans have opposed Cruz, including former Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney, who endorsed Allred last month.

"I've known Ted Cruz for 20 years. And it's been clear—everybody who knows Ted Cruz, and I'm sure most of you in this room know Ted Cruz, nobody thinks Ted Cruz is a man of great honor," Cheney said.

"What Ted Cruz did after the 2020 election makes him clearly unfit for office. Ted Cruz, knowing—knowing that it was unconstitutional, knowing that Joe Biden had won the election, knowing that the election had been certified in every one of our states and that a legitimate slate of electors—that there were no contested slates of electors that were legitimate, knowing that, Ted Cruz put in place a proposal to reject many of those votes, to essentially reject the votes of millions of Americans, what would have been overturning the election. And he did that to please Donald Trump," she said, referring to Cruz's efforts to push Trump's baseless claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

Cheney is the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney. Both father and daughter have endorsed Democrat Kamala Harris for president.

"My campaign is open and welcome to conservatives...and any Republican ready to turn the page on Ted Cruz," Allred posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday.

Despite growing support for Allred, polls still show Cruz marginally ahead. A survey conducted by ActiVote between September 5 and 30 put the incumbent Texas senator 5 points ahead. The poll surveyed 400 likely voters and had a margin of error of +/- 4.9 percent.

Another poll, conducted by Public Policy Polling between September 25 and 26, put Cruz ahead by only 1 point. The poll surveyed 759 registered voters and had a margin of error of +/- 3.5 percent.

Meanwhile, a poll conducted by Morning Consult between September 9 and 18 showed that for the first time, Allred was 1 point ahead of Cruz, 45 percent to his 44 percent among 2,716 likely voters. His lead was within the poll's margin of error of +/- 2 percentage points.

"For the first time in this race, a new poll has us leading Ted Cruz by 1 point. I don't know about y'all but I'm fired up and ready to WIN! We've got 47 days, let's do this Texas," Allred said in a post on X.

Since 1993, only Republicans have represented Texas in the U.S. Senate. Cruz narrowly won his last election six years ago, beating challenger Beto O'Rourke by 2.6 percent. It was the closest U.S. Senate race in Texas since 1978.

This year's race could be equally as close, according to Brett Loyd, president and CEO of polling company The Bullfinch Group, who previously told Newsweek that the state is anybody's to win.

"The Texas Senate race is a toss-up. It should have always been considered a toss-up. That is not to say Cruz will lose, but the race should be looked at as anyone's game," he said.

Cook Political Report has classified the Texas Senate race as "lean Republican." It was previously classified as "likely Republican" for most of the 2024 election cycle.

RealClearPolitics' polling tracker puts Cruz on average 5 points ahead of Allred.

Amid the tight race, which could determine who controls the Senate in 2025, the Democrats are spending millions to hold onto their majority.

Allred has raised about $38.4 million to date, according to data from the Federal Elections Commission. Cruz's campaign has raised $59.6 million.

Senator Gary Peters, chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said at a National Press Club appearance on September 26 that his party was making a "multimillion-dollar investment" in TV advertising in a bid to win Senate races in Texas and Florida. He did not specify how much would be spent.

The Democrats have a wafer-thin Senate majority, with 51 senators aligned with the party versus 49 with the Republicans. Republicans must secure only two additional seats in November to gain a Senate majority when the new Congress convenes next year. They are expected to win one seat in West Virginia.

Meanwhile, the Democrats need to win one additional seat. DecisionDeskHQ has predicted that the Republicans have a 55 percent chance of taking control of Congress.

Update 10/5/2024 6:19 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from the Cruz campaign.