TEXAS — Sen. Ted Cruz on Thursday morning warned Texas delegates that his reelection bid is not in the bag, and that a change for Democrats could energize their party. 

What You Need To Know

  • After narrowly beating former congressman Beto O’Rourke in the 2018 Senate race, Cruz warned delegates not to take his bid for reelection lightly as he now faces Dallas Rep. Colin Allred

  • Recent polling indicates a close race between Cruz and Allred, which has Cruz concerned Republicans are overconfident in their party’s chances of success

  • Cruz says the party’s focus can’t just be on Trump’s election

  • Cruz also believes if Democrats keep President Joe Biden as the nominee, that will solidify the party’s success – he’s unsure about the outcome if Democrats decide to select a different nominee

“Texas is a battlefield. Listen, it’s easy to be complacent. One of the real mistakes people make in politics is they have a recency bias,” said Cruz.

After narrowly beating former congressman Beto O’Rourke in the 2018 Senate race, Cruz warned delegates not to take his bid for reelection lightly as he now faces Dallas Rep. Colin Allred.

“Complacency is dangerous,” said Cruz.

Recent polling indicates a close race between Cruz and Allred, which has Cruz concerned Republicans are overconfident in their party’s chances of success.

“Every crazy, wild-eyed leftist in New York City or Chicago or San Francisco, they go online, and they give to whoever is running against me,” said Cruz.

He stressed the importance of attracting more women to the party. After the Supreme Court gave the power to regulate abortions back to the states, some women questioned the Republican Party.

Allred’s campaign agreed Cruz is vulnerable. Allred’s campaign manager, Paige Hutchison, said in a statement that “In the last six years Ted Cruz has made himself more vulnerable than ever. By championing a statewide abortion ban that forces women to flee their state for lifesaving health care, abandoning Texans during a statewide freeze for a Cancun vacation and voting no on capping insulin costs — Texans know they can’t count on Ted Cruz. Congressman Allred is building a winning campaign that will beat Cruz and give Texans the leadership they deserve in the Senate.”

But Denise Ballew is an energized Republican woman.

“We are fighting tooth and nail for him along with all the other Republican women in Texas,” said Ballew.

Cruz says the party’s focus can’t just be on former President Donald Trump’s election.

“When Trump wins in November, when we show up in January, the work is not done on Election Day. You’ve got to put people in office who know how to take on the deep state and clean out the corruption that is weaponized throughout the state,” said Cruz. 

Cruz also believes if Democrats keep President Joe Biden as the nominee, that will solidify the party’s success – he’s unsure about the outcome if Democrats decide to select a different competitor for Trump.