(NewsNation) — NewsNation/Decision Desk HQ has called the race for the U.S. Senate seat for Texas in favor of Ted Cruz. See all Texas race results here.
Two-term Sen. Ted Cruz defended his seat in Republican-leaning Texas against Democratic challenger and former NFL linebacker Colin Allred, who sought to become the first Democrat to capture a U.S. Senate race in Texas since 1988.
Texas was a key state along with Ohio and Montana where Democrats poured in resources to help candidates hang on to or advance their positions. The outcome of the Texas Senate race could teeter the balance of power in the upper chamber of Congress.
Texas has long been a safehold for Republican candidates, but in recent years has begun trending purple as the electorate becomes more diversified, urban and suburban. Trump won Texas over President Joe Biden by 6.5 points, which is the closest margin of victory in the state since 1996.
Cruz has been Texas’ junior senator since 2013 and was reelected in 2018 after a hotly contested victory over Democrat Beto O’Rourke who won a lot of national support in his bid to upset Cruz. After holding on to his Senate seat six years ago, Cruz, who once ran against former President Donald Trump in a bid for the Republican presidential ticket in 2016, has now become a staunch defender of the former president.
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A former attorney and Texas solicitor general, Cruz had remained popular with voters in his home state by advocating for limited government, economic growth and national security. Cruz serves as the top Republican on the Senate Commerce Committee and says he’s committed to protecting Americans’ privacy and security. The union representing the U.S. Border Patrol endorsed the Republican back in August, a win for Cruz.
Allred, a former Baylor University football standout and linebacker for the NFL’s Tennessee Titans, worked formerly as a civil rights attorney before he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2018. Allred defeated a 22-year Republican incumbent after working previously for former President Barack Obama’s administration at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Since joining Congress, Allred has partnered with Republicans on several bipartisan measures involving the U.S.-Mexico border, gun safety and state infrastructure. He built his 2024 Senate bid around issues including expanding access to affordable birth control and abortion care access, lowering prescription drug costs, supporting border communities that are inundated with migrants crossing the Southern border, and promoting renewable and clean energy efforts in Texas, among others.
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Less than a month before the election, The Hill/ Decision Desk HQ Election Center forecast that Cruz had a 76% chance of winning the Texas Senate race. Cruz also outpaced his challenger in both fundraising and spending: Cruz raised more than $57 million and spent more than $45 million compared to Allred’s more than $37 million raised and more than $27 million spent, according to Open Secrets. However, Allred’s fundraising picked up in the months before the election, with Allred announcing he had raised more than $30 million over three months.
The outcome of this race will affect the balance of power in the Senate. A total of 34 seats are up in 2024, with 23 being held by Democrats and independents. Republicans can retake control of the upper chamber of Congress by flipping two seats from Democrats or by winning the presidential race and flipping just one other seat.
