Allred says he'd ‘run differently' if he launches new Texas Senate campaign
Former Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas) said he would 'run differently' if he launches a second Senate campaign, including being in Texas full time.
'I'm proud that in the last campaign we had the most ticket splitters of any state in the country,' Allred told NBC 5 Dallas on Sunday. 'We outperformed by votes, the presidential nominee on my same ticket by more than any Senate candidate in the country.
'I'm proud that we had that crossover and made that difference, but it wasn't good enough,' he continued. 'And so obviously I would run differently, and I feel different. I feel much more relaxed about it.'
Allred said running for Senate while serving in the House did not give him the time he wanted to 'dig in' on the campaign trail.
'And so I look forward and I'm excited about the opportunity that if I did run again, that I'd be here full time and could do that differently,' he said.
Allred is actively considering launching a second campaign for Senate in the state ahead of 2026. The then-congressman lost to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) last year by just more than 8 points. However, Democrats say they see an opportunity to flip Sen. John Cornyn's (R-Texas) seat as he faces an uphill primary challenge from state Attorney General Ken Paxton (R ).
'I'm seriously considering it,' Allred said.
'I've been looking at the Senate race because of my experience at the federal level. … I look at that and I see someone in Ken Paxton who is historically corrupt, was impeached by a Republican Legislature because of that, and I see a John Cornyn who I don't really recognize a somebody who I think has lost any semblance of independence,' he said.
Most polls show Paxton leading Cornyn ahead of the February primary. Other polls show Democrats within striking distance of Paxton in a general election.
Democrats have begun to ramp up their spending in the city ahead of 2026. Texas Majority PAC and the Texas Democratic Party launched an eight-figure campaign dubbed 'Blue Texas' last week aimed at electing Democrats up and down the ballot in the Lone Star State next year.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Axios
6 minutes ago
- Axios
"She's missing stuff": Norton's colleagues see signs of decline
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) has long been a formidable presence in the halls of Congress despite her non-voting status. Now at 88 years old, some of her colleagues tell Axios that presence has diminished considerably. Why it matters: Lawmakers said Norton has been much less involved recently at critical moments for the District, as President Trump and his allies in Congress threaten overturning the city's laws and squeeze its budget. One House Democrat who knows Norton's work from the Oversight Committee told Axios that during efforts to pass D.C. statehood in 2020 and 2021, she "wasn't talking to many people." The lawmaker described a similar dynamic earlier this year when Congress passed a measure that unexpectedly forced D.C. to cut $1.1 billion from its budget. "There was a time when she lobbied her colleagues to explain D.C.'s positions," they said. "She doesn't do that anymore." The big picture: While she possesses a robust staff, Norton herself keeps public appearances to a minimum. On rare occasions Norton has talked to reporters this year, her staff twice walked back her answers. Last week Norton staffers hedged after she told reporters she planned to run for a 19th term next year. Mayor Muriel Bowser has ramped up her Hill lobbying in recent years on issues like statehood and revamping RFK Stadium. Norton's floor time dropped from 44 days between 2019 to 2020 to just 18 days from 2023 to 2024. She's spoken a handful of times so far this year. What she's saying: "Last Congress I successfully blocked nearly all of the 100+ federal legislative attacks on D.C," Norton told Axios in a statement, touting getting the statehood bill passed twice in the House. Norton said her office "was on the phone with Republican leadership within minutes" about the D.C. budget issue, adding she has "publicly highlighted this injustice nearly 70 times since then ... and I have no plans to stop until the bill is passed." "D.C. residents have embraced me as their 'Warrior on the Hill,' where I've been privileged to have a long and successful tenure defending D.C. residents." What we're hearing: "She's missing stuff," a senior House Democrat said of Norton's apparent decline, telling Axios that Democratic leadership's deliberations about her potential reelection bid are "delicate." A third House Democrat said their own observation of Norton from working with her on a committee is that she essentially goes through the motions and little else: "She shows up to committee, she reads the speech." "All of that is true," said a fourth House Democrat. "She reads what her staff puts in front of her. She can't say anything she's not reading. That's a staff-driven office now, just like you saw in the Senate with Feinstein," referencing the late California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein. The other side: Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), the acting ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, said Norton has been "more visible than I've seen most members" as the panel has considered D.C.-related bills. "From my own observation, I think she's trying to work her tail off, to be honest with you," Lynch said of Norton. "I see a very productive member." State of play: Norton publicly maintains she is still considering a reelection bid as D.C. Council members publicly express concerns about her running. "Through thoughtful discussions with my friends, family, and closest advisors, I'm still considering my options for the next election cycle," she said in her statement on Monday. Between the lines: Many House Democrats declined to weigh in on whether Norton should run — largely because they haven't spoken with her. "I don't know that I'm ready to bury [her] yet," said D.C.-area Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.). "We just haven't had conversations about it one way or the other — I haven't anyway." Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told Axios: "I haven't seen her in a little bit, so I haven't had a chance to hear what she has to say."
Axios
6 minutes ago
- Axios
The GOP's come to Jesus moment on Texas Senate race
A new private GOP poll is showing Republicans facing a growing problem in the Texas Senate race, the third such survey in just a month. Why it matters: Republicans haven't lost a statewide race in Texas in more than three decades, but party officials concede they may need to spend millions to keep the seat this year. "The problem is nobody with the necessary gravitas seems to be willing to state the obvious: this is shaping up to be a f***ing disaster," a senior GOP Senate aide told Axios. Zoom in: Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) trails state Attorney General Ken Paxton by 16 percentage points in a new survey conducted by veteran Republican pollster Chris Wilson. A copy was obtained by Axios. But Paxton trails a generic Democrat by three percentage points in a general election matchup. The establishment-aligned Cornyn performs far better than Paxton in a general election, leading a Democrat by seven percentage points. The survey results are similar to recent surveys conducted by the GOP-aligned Senate Leadership Fund super PAC and the American Opportunity Alliance, a network of influential Republican donors. Between the lines: Paxton was impeached by the state House of Representatives in 2023 on bribery and corruption charges but was later acquitted by the state Senate. "If the goal is to maintain a GOP Senate majority and maximize Trump's down-ballot coattails in Texas, Paxton's nomination is a strategic liability," Wilson, who has advised Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), said in a memo accompanying the poll. "If Paxton wins the primary, the GOP is on a path to hand Democrats their best Senate opportunity in a generation," Wilson added. Yes, but: Cornyn has more than $8 million in the bank between his campaign and super PAC accounts and has yet to begin unloading on Paxton, which Cornyn aides insist will tighten the primary contest. Cornyn has also assembled a seasoned team of operatives that includes senior Trump political advisers Chris LaCivita and Tony Fabrizio. The bottom line: "The Cornyn campaign remains confident that once Texas GOP primary voters fully understand Ken Paxton's record of mismanagement, self-dealing and ethical failures, we will win the primary," said Cornyn spokesperson Matt Mackowiak.
CNN
13 minutes ago
- CNN
Medicaid cuts, other details from Senate committee's tax bill text
The GOP-led Senate Finance Committee on Monday released its proposal for President Donald Trump's agenda bill that calls for enacting sweeping cuts to Medicaid and preventing a multi-trillion dollar tax hike on Americans. The committee would maintain many of the provisions contained in the legislation that the House narrowly approved last month, including making permanent essentially all the individual income tax cuts contained in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which are set to expire at year's end, and instituting work requirements in Medicaid for the first time. But the committee is calling for some notable changes to the package, including lowering the cap on state and local tax deductions, instituting deeper cuts to Medicaid, slowing the elimination of some clean energy tax credits and making permanent several business tax breaks and a beefed-up child tax credit. Senate committees are racing to release their versions of the 'Big, Beautiful Bill' in hopes of passing their package next week so the two chambers can work out a final deal and send it to Trump by July 4. In the legislative text unveiled Monday, the Senate Finance Committee would permanently extend the current $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions, potentially blowing up a carefully constructed deal in the House to lift the cap on state and local deductions to $40,000 for married couples. However, the committee noted in a summary of its provisions that the cap is 'the subject of continuing negotiations.' The $10,000 cap, which was instituted by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, was a major sticking point in the House negotiations. Speaker Mike Johnson worked out an agreement with GOP lawmakers from high-tax states to raise the cap to $40,000 for those making $500,000 or less. But Senate Republicans have expressed disdain for the deal because of its price tag and because it primarily benefits taxpayers from blue states. Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican, issued a stern warning to Senate Republicans earlier on Monday: Any changes to pare back the deal, he said, would cause the bill to collapse in the House. 'After engaging in good faith negotiations, we were able to increase the cap on SALT from $10,000 to $40,000,' Lawler said in a statement. 'That is the deal, and I will not accept a penny less. If the Senate reduces the SALT number, I will vote NO, and the bill will fail in the House.' Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee are also calling for making permanent several tax breaks for businesses, including allowing companies to immediately deduct the cost of equipment and research and development in the year the expense was incurred. These are designed to enhance the economic growth potential of the package but would also increase the cost. The committee would also permanently beef up the child tax credit to $2,200, in contrast to the House, which would increase the credit to $2,500 from 2025 through 2028. And while the Senate committee would keep Trump's campaign promises to eliminate taxes on tips and overtime, it would place caps on that relief –- allowing tipped workers to deduct only up to $25,000 in tip income and limiting the deduction for overtime pay to $12,500 for a single worker. Those tax breaks would only be in place from 2025 through 2028, as in the House version. But the Senate measure would provide a more generous deduction for senior citizens than the House bill: $6,000 versus $4,000. The provision would be in effect from 2025 through 2028 in both versions of the bill. In a contentious move, the committee would cap most states' ability to levy provider taxes on certain health care providers – notably, hospitals – to 3.5% by 2031, down from the current 6% limit. However, that provision would only apply to the 40 states and the District of Columbia that have expanded Medicaid to low-income adults. States that have not expanded Medicaid, which are largely GOP-led states, would be restricted from increasing the rate of their current provider taxes, which would not have as sizable an impact. The issue of provider taxes has divided GOP lawmakers, with conservatives arguing that states use these taxes to get more federal Medicaid matching funds, while more moderate members worry that limiting such taxes could hurt hospitals, particularly those in rural areas. States use the revenue they raise from taxing providers to boost provider rates and fund health-related initiatives, among other uses. Every state except one levies at least one type of provider tax. Also, the Senate would require more parents to work, volunteer, go to school or participate in job training for at least 80 hours a month to maintain their Medicaid benefits. The committee would mandate that parents of children ages 15 and older would be subject to the work requirement, while the House version exempted parents of dependent children. The Senate's changes would likely result in even more people losing their Medicaid coverage than the House provisions, which would increase the number of uninsured Americans by 7.8 million in 2034, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The Senate Finance Committee text would kill a consumer tax credit for electric vehicles and quickly phase out tax credits helping homeowners defray the cost of energy efficient appliances and rooftop solar, ending those by next year. The Senate text differs somewhat from the House bill on energy tax credits for businesses producing electricity. Like the House bill, it hits wind and solar producers particularly hard, phasing out clean energy tax credits for those projects starting next year, with the credit ending by 2028. However, companies generating electricity with zero-emission sources like nuclear, geothermal or hydropower can claim the credit for a longer period of time. The Senate text would also terminate a tax credit for companies that make clean hydrogen, something favored by the oil and gas industry. The Senate committee would raise the debt limit by $5 trillion, compared to $4 trillion in the House version, providing more time for Trump to enact his policies without needing to negotiate a deal with Democrats to address the cap. The US hit its roughly $36 trillion debt ceiling in January. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has urged Congress to address the cap before its August recess to allow the agency to continue paying the nation's bills in full and on time, preventing a default that would likely have catastrophic global economic consequences.
