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Two-term Republican Ted Cruz was narrowly reelected in 2018 with 50.9% of the vote. Cruz is running for a third term.[169]

The Democratic nominee is U.S. representative Colin Allred, who defeated state senator Roland Gutierrez and state representative Carl Sherman in the primary election.

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• Cruz onAir Post
• Cruz Campaign Site
• Cruz Government Site
• Colin Allred onAir Post
• Colin Allred Campaign Site

Ted Cruz

Colin Allred

Issues

Ted Cruz

Source: Campaign Site

Colin Allred

Source: Campaign Site

HEALTH CARE

Colin believes health care is a right and every Texan deserves access to quality, affordable health care.

Texas has the highest uninsured rate in the nation, leading to much worse health outcomes for the more than 5 million Texans who are uninsured, and higher health care costs and property taxes for every Texan. Millions of our neighbors are one illness or accident away from bankruptcy, and millions more are underinsured, unable to afford vital medications or procedures, all while the cost of care and prescription drugs continues to rise. Colin was fortunate his single mom, a Dallas public school teacher, had health insurance through her job. And when his mom was diagnosed with breast cancer, he saw how, without his mom’s Medicare-backed plan, their family could quickly have been bankrupted.

In Congress, Colin has been a champion for expanding access to health care and lowering costs. His first act in Congress was to stand up to partisan attacks on the Affordable Care Act, maintaining protections for people with pre-existing health conditions and expanding coverage for working families. He led the fight to lower drug costs for Texas seniors, passing a cap on out-of-pocket costs, capping the cost of insulin, and allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription costs to drive down prices. He is committed to extending these savings to all Texans.

Colin believes that Texas should expand Medicaid, covering 1.4 million more Texans using tax dollars that our state is already paying to the federal government, but he is unwilling to wait for state officials to do the right thing. In Congress, Colin has worked to use the Affordable Care Act to lower costs and insure Texans who should have been eligible for Medicaid. In the Senate, Colin will protect and improve Medicare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the Affordable Care Act, while also investing in a new generation of highly trained nurses and primary care physicians.

And Colin will always stand up for a woman’s right to make her own reproductive health care decisions.

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

Colin believes women should have the freedom to make their own reproductive health care decisions, without interference from the government. He strongly opposed the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision and supports legislation to make the protections under Roe v. Wade the law of the land. Colin has spoken out against Texas’ extreme law that bans abortion before most women even know they’re pregnant and offers no exceptions, even in the cases of rape, incest, and when the health of the mother is in jeopardy. Colin trusts women to decide if and when to start a family – and to make their own health care decisions.

Colin’s also worked to expand access to affordable birth control and over-the-counter contraception to reduce teen pregnancy and give women more control over their future.

JOBS AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

Colin lived his version of the American Dream here in Texas and is committed to restoring this fundamental promise for future generations by fighting for good-paying jobs and an economy that works for everyone.

In Congress, Colin has been an advocate for small businesses and raising wages for workers, earning the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Advocate for American Business Award for championing bipartisan policies that help the growth of local businesses. He’s one of the few members of Congress to be endorsed by both the U.S. Chamber, the definitive national voice for business, and leading labor unions, like the AFL-CIO, in both of his re-election campaigns.

Colin knows that to keep our economy prospering, we must ensure that businesses have trained workers and that Texans can access the training they need to find a good paying job. In Congress, Colin has been a strong supporter of job apprenticeship programs through expanded use of the Pell Grant to help talented young people get trained in the skills they need to meet the needs of our economy. He has also secured over $14 million for local institutions like Dallas College, University of Texas at Dallas, and Texas A&M Commerce to help support and expand their job training efforts. Additionally, he helped secure a tech hub at SMU in Dallas that will train Texans to work in high tech manufacturing jobs.

Colin believes that every American has the right to retire with dignity, which is why he strongly opposes cuts to Social Security and Medicare to ensure a secure retirement for every Texan.

In Congress Colin has:

• Passed a once-in-a-generation investment, with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, to repair and rebuild our crumbling infrastructure, creating thousands of Texas jobs.
• Worked with the Texas delegation and President Trump to pass the revised USMCA trade deal with Mexico and Canada, supporting tens of thousands of Texas jobs.
• Voted to bring American high-tech manufacturing back to our shores and invest in microchips made right here in Texas.
• Helped grow our energy industry and make our power grid more reliable, helping to keep Texas as the number one state for wind energy and second biggest state for solar power.
• Voted for the Paycheck Fairness Act which will help ensure women get equal pay for equal work.
• Voted to raise the minimum wage, because in America, no one should live in poverty while working full time and playing by the rules.
• Made job training a top priority because we must ensure all our workers can get the skills they need, whether they go to college or not.
• Expanded investments in high-speed internet to ensure that every community in Texas has access to information, global markets and business opportunities

After the birth of his first child, Colin became the first member of Congress to take paternity leave. He understands the importance of paid family leave for new parents to bond with their children and for people to be able to take care of sick loved ones. Growing up without a father, Colin promised himself that he would be a devoted and loving father, and he wants the same opportunities for all moms and dads. He understands that this is not only a family issue but an economic one – without paid leave, many parents simply can’t afford to take time off to take care of their child.

Colin will continue to champion small businesses, stand up for fair wages and good benefits for workers, invest in skills training, and work to bring more manufacturing jobs back home to America.

EDUCATION

As the son of a single mom who taught in Dallas public schools, Colin knows the importance of education and the struggles facing so many teachers today. Dallas public schools gave Colin the preparation he needed to make it to Baylor University and eventually law school.

Without sustained investments in public education, a generation of kids are in danger of being left behind, robbed of the opportunity to live their dreams and create a better life for themselves and their families.

In Congress, Colin has been a strong supporter of investing in our public schools and ensuring they have the resources they need to support our students. This includes investing in school infrastructure as well as lowering the cost of child care and universal pre-K, so that every child, regardless of their zip code, can get a good start on their education and parents get much-needed relief in child care.

Colin believes we must prepare the next generation of Texans for the jobs of the future by expanding access to community colleges and strengthening job training programs. He believes we must drive down the cost of higher education across the board, so that middle class families aren’t saddled with thousands of dollars in debt to get a college degree. Colin knows how hard teachers work, and strongly supports efforts in the state legislature to raise teachers’ pay.

IMMIGRATION

Colin’s mother was raised in Brownsville and he often spent summers visiting his grandmother in the Rio Grande Valley. He knows our current immigration system is broken and supports comprehensive immigration reform that includes securing our borders, protecting Dreamers, and providing a pathway to earned citizenship for those who are working hard and obeying the law. Colin will work with both parties to get it done.

In Congress, Colin has fought to keep our border and communities secure by ensuring our law enforcement is equipped with the training and tools they need. Colin has worked to protect Dreamers, and voted for the bipartisan Dream and Promise Act — a common-sense solution to ensure these young people who are here through no fault of their own can stay in the only country they have ever known.

Colin is committed to solutions that ensure those obeying the law, working hard, paying taxes, and contributing to our economy have a pathway to earn citizenship.

Colin has been vocal that we need to ensure due process under the law when handling immigration cases because no family seeking legal means to come to America should be separated at the border. Additionally, employers who knowingly hire and exploit undocumented workers should be held accountable for their actions. He is focused on real solutions to this complicated problem, not cruel political stunts that don’t represent our values or solve the problem.

Colin believes we must do more to support our border communities who have been most affected by increased migration, and work with countries across Central and South America to address the root causes of economic instability and violence that fuel migration.

DEFENDING OUR DEMOCRACY

As a voting rights lawyer and a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Colin is a leading voice for protecting and expanding democracy here at home and abroad.

Colin believes that we need to reverse the undue influence of money in politics by putting power back in the hands of the people. That’s why Colin supports legislative efforts, including a constitutional amendment, to overturn the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling that allowed unlimited special interest money to flow into our elections. Colin doesn’t accept campaign donations from corporate PACs. He is a voice for Texans, not donors or corporate special interests.

This issue is personal to Colin: as a voting rights attorney who has seen the negative impact of voter suppression firsthand, Colin knows that these practices must end.

Colin was an early leader, calling for wholesale reforms to root out corruption, get big money out of politics, end gerrymandering, and ensure every eligible voter can easily exercise their constitutional right to vote. In Congress, Colin has been a champion of legislation reinstating and modernizing the Voting Rights Act to halt new voter suppression laws that have had a clear impact on voter turnout.

GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION

Texas has a strong heritage of responsible gun ownership – and we should be proud of our state’s history of marksmanship, hunting, and self-reliance. Growing up, Colin learned riflery at YMCA summer camp – teaching him the values of responsibility and prioritizing firearm safety.

Responsible, law-abiding Texans own guns for a variety of reasons, and Colin strongly supports our right to do so. And Colin knows we can respect the 2nd Amendment while taking common-sense steps to protect our kids and save lives – steps that will have no effect on responsible gun owners.

Colin was proud to vote with Texas Senator John Cornyn to help pass the most significant gun violence reduction bill in a generation following the Uvalde tragedy, implementing common-sense reforms such as expanding background checks, closing the boyfriend loophole, and expanding mental health services.

Colin has also worked in Congress to ensure local law enforcement are able to intervene and make sure that, if someone is going through a mental health crisis, they aren’t able to easily access firearms they can use to injure or kill themselves or others.

Colin also supports common-sense safe storage laws for firearms so that young children aren’t able to accidentally injure or kill themselves or their siblings, or criminals aren’t able to steal them and use them in violent crimes.

Whether it’s suicides, homicides in Texas inner cities, or mass shootings at our schools and places of worship, the rate of gun deaths in this state is unacceptable. Colin wants to bring Texans together to find common-sense solutions that will simultaneously protect our constitutional rights – and save lives.

EQUALITY UNDER THE LAW

As a civil rights attorney, Colin believes we must stand united against all forms of prejudice and discrimination. He’s been an outspoken supporter of LGBTQ+ rights, proudly supporting passage of legislation enshrining marriage equality into law and voting to protect Texans from discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender.

Political attacks targeting LGBTQ+ Texans are shameful and are attacks on the fundamental right to live free from discrimination. These attacks are particularly harmful to transgender kids and their families who just want to live their lives free from interference and intimidation.

Colin also fought for fairness for women, voting to guarantee equal pay for equal work, and to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.

He knows diversity is one of Texas’ great strengths, and he continues to support programs to help lift up and create opportunities for communities of color across our state. When our businesses and our government have leadership that reflects the diversity of Texas, it makes us stronger.

ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

We can protect our environment, combat climate change, lower energy costs and incentivize economic growth simultaneously. We need an all-of-the-above energy strategy that keeps costs low and helps create a more reliable electric grid. For the last one hundred years Texas has been an energy leader and Colin will continue to support responsible oil and gas production as he has done during his time in Congress. He has been an advocate for taking necessary steps to limit methane leaks and he helped secure $25 million for Texas to plug 800 orphan wells.

Colin knows that to continue our status as the number one energy producing state, Texas can and should lead on renewable and clean energy, creating good-paying jobs for hard-working Texans and protecting the planet for future generations. We are already doing it with wind and solar energy – Texas leads the nation in wind energy production and is second in solar energy production.

It’s clear there will be an economic competition to lead the clean energy future, and Colin knows that if we’re going to keep these jobs in Texas, we have to make the investments necessary to beat China and lead the world.

NATIONAL SECURITY AND VETERANS

Colin serves on the Foreign Affairs Committee and has the utmost respect for our brave men and women in uniform and our veterans. He believes a strong national defense is critical to protecting America and our interests around the world.

Colin has been honored to meet with troops serving our nation across the globe, having made official visits to Iraq, Afghanistan, South Korea, Japan, and Kuwait. He’s also visited Israel multiple times to encourage peace throughout the region.

He is a staunch supporter of Ukraine and its defense against the Russian invasion. Colin knows that protecting our democratic allies against Russian and other aggressors is vital to our national interest. And he will continue to support efforts to root out terrorist groups that threaten America. Colin also believes that we must deter Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific and around the world, and has made an official visit to Taiwan to reinforce our commitment to this important strategic and democratic partner.

Colin believes we must do more to honor our sacred commitment to take care of our veterans. He led a bipartisan effort to create a new VA medical center in Garland, creating 5,000 jobs and reducing wait times for veterans to get much-needed care. Colin has also led efforts to establish a new state-of-the-art spinal cord injury center in Dallas and fund the construction of a new VA medical center in El Paso.

He strongly supports expanding mental health and addiction services so that veterans suffering from PTSD and other service-related trauma can access the help they need. Colin also supports measures to increase job-training programs and educational opportunities so veterans can find good civilian jobs that take advantage of their skills. The number of homeless veterans is deeply troubling – and we must help local communities provide shelter and transition services to get unhoused veterans into safe, stable housing.

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL COMMUNITIES

Rural communities and the agriculture industries that support them have always been part of the fabric of Texas. About 1-in-7 Texans work in agriculture-related jobs, and our state is the top producer of cotton in the nation.

Colin worked with both parties to pass a new trade deal with Mexico and Canada, ensuring Texas’ farmers and ranchers have access to important markets and can benefit from increased and more fair trade.

As a member of the Transportation Committee, Colin was proud to work with Republicans and Democrats to pass historic infrastructure investments in every part of Texas. This includes our roads and bridges as well as expanding access to affordable high-speed internet. In the 1930s lawmakers worked together to bring electricity to our rural communities, and now Colin is proud to help bring $3.3 billion to Texas, the most of any state, to ensure that by 2030 everyone in our rural communities can have access to affordable high-speed internet. Colin is also proud that the Affordable Connectivity Program, another part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, is helping 1.5 million Texans with lower internet bills.

Colin knows that too many of our rural communities are being left out of Texas’ economic growth. Too many young people are struggling to find economic opportunity in the small towns that raised them; too many are having to travel long distances to get job training or an education or to see a doctor; and too many are falling prey to deadly fentanyl and the opioid epidemic.

In the past decade, more than 21 rural hospitals have closed across our state – far more than any other state. This is the result of our rising health care costs and failure to expand Medicaid so that these costs don’t fall back on the hospitals. Rural hospitals are not only a lifeline for health care for our rural communities, but they can act as economic engines bringing jobs and local tax revenue.

Colin has worked to deliver for rural communities — he has lowered health care costs for folks that get health plans through healthcare.gov and he voted to cap insulin and prescription drug costs for folks on Medicare. He also helped pass into law the bipartisan Rural Emergency Hospital program, which gives rural communities financial help to keep health care centers open and prevent closures.

Colin knows that when our rural communities are strong, Texas is strong. He is committed to ensuring that whether it is protecting our energy economy, supporting farmers and ranchers or increasing access to affordable health care — we must deliver for our rural communities.

SENIORS

Colin is deeply committed to protecting Medicare and Social Security for Texas seniors who spent a lifetime paying into those programs and rely on them to retire with dignity and security. He has repeatedly stood up to right-wing efforts to cut benefits and privatize Social Security or turn Medicare into a voucher system.

He is committed to keeping those programs solvent not just for today’s seniors, but future generations.

Colin supports an expansion of Medicaid that would help low-income seniors be able to afford assisted living and full-time care when they need it.