Ted Cruz Faces Tight Race Against Colin Allred: ‘CA Refugee 4 Ted!!’ Irony in Campaign Slogan
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Longtime Texas Senator Ted Cruz is facing a surprisingly close re-election race against his Democratic opponent, former NFL player Colin Allred. A new Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey reveals that Cruz holds just a one-point lead over Allred, making the race far more competitive than expected.
Cruz’s campaign slogan, “Keep Texas, Texas,” reflects his focus on “securing the Texas-Mexico border” and maintaining the state’s conservative identity. During his campaign kickoff in August, Cruz told supporters, “Everyone that wants to turn Texas into California, look at this room and realize you cannot have the great state of Texas!” The Texas senator is positioning himself as a defender of the state’s traditional values against what he describes as outside influences threatening its identity.
However, an article published by Mother Jones on October 23 highlights the irony behind Cruz’s slogan. National correspondent Tim Murphy points out that while Cruz and his Republican allies often accuse Democrats of “importing” voters from across the border, Cruz himself is relying heavily on support from newcomers to Texas—particularly from states like California.
Murphy underscores this paradox with a vivid example from Cruz’s campaign trail. “At the end of every event on Ted Cruz’s 53-stop campaign swing through Texas, the state’s junior senator invites supporters to line up and sign his bus,” he writes. Among the signatures, one message in gold marker stands out: “CA Refugee 4 Ted!!”
“This is the great irony of the embattled Republican’s reelection bid,” Murphy notes. For a party that often warns against demographic changes brought by migration, Texas Republicans are increasingly reliant on transplants from other states to maintain their political dominance. In fact, Cruz’s support base now includes many Californians who have moved to Texas, drawn by its lower taxes and more conservative policies, according to Austin, Texas KVUE News.
Murphy adds that Cruz’s challenge isn’t just from Democratic voters, many of whom are native Texans. “The people he is seeking to protect Texas from, according to the data, are Texas-born residents (who backed his 2018 opponent, Beto O’Rourke),” Murphy writes. In contrast, Cruz’s most loyal supporters often come from out-of-state, a phenomenon that complicates his messaging about protecting Texas from outside influences.
As Cruz campaigns across Texas, his focus on issues like border security and preserving the state’s conservative image takes precedence over addressing more pressing concerns within the state. Murphy notes that Cruz’s speeches rarely touch on key issues such as Texas’s fragile power grid, public health challenges, or the state’s low-service, high-tax model. Instead, his campaign leans heavily on symbolism—preserving what Murphy calls the “image” of Texas, rather than grappling with its complex realities.
The competition between Cruz and Allred is shaping up to be a referendum not just on the future of Texas politics, but on what kind of Texas voters want. Murphy concludes that the race, in many ways, is a contest between “Texas and Texas™”—a battle between the lived experiences of the state’s residents and the broader identity that Cruz is seeking to preserve.
As the election draws nearer, Cruz’s reliance on voters from other states, juxtaposed with his slogan about keeping Texas unchanged, raises questions about how his message will resonate with voters and whether it will be enough to keep him in office.
