TEXAS — Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, on Wednesday reported he raised $4.7 million in the third quarter of his campaign for U.S. Senate. He’s seeking to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.

While the Dallas-area congressman is a threat to Cruz, he has some competition.

In July, Texas state Sen. Roland Gutierrez announced his candidacy. Last month, former Nueces County District Attorney Mark Gonzalez stepped down and threw his hat in the ring. Also running is state Rep. Carl Sherman of DeSoto.

The candidates will battle it out in the March primary. 

Gonzalez, a two-term district attorney whose county included Corpus Christi, has received national attention for refusing to prosecute abortion cases.

Gutierrez, a San Antonio Democrat, has been the most vocal advocate for gun restrictions following the May 24, 2022, mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde.

Gutierrez is an immigration attorney who has served in the Texas Legislature since 2008 and the Texas Senate since 2021.

According to Allred’s social media post on Wednesday, his most recent haul included more than 80,000 individual donors with an average contribution of under $30. It additionally included support from 236 counties.

According to the Texas Tribune, at the end of the second quarter, Allred had $5.7 million in cash on hand compared to Cruz’s $4.8 million.

No Democrat has won statewide office in Texas in nearly 30 years. Former congressman Beto O’Rourke nearly beat Cruz in 2018 — in what was a strong year for Democrats nationally — but was soundly defeated by double digits last year in a challenge against Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.