Colin Allred announces launch for U.S. Senate seat

DALLAS (Nexstar) — Former U.S. Congressman Colin Allred officially launched his campaign for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday.

The former NFL player said his campaign will focus on “lowering costs and fighting the corrupt politicians rigging the economy against hardworking Texans,” according to the news release announcing his campaign.

“Everything’s backwards. Folks who play by the rules and keep the faith just can’t seem to get ahead,” Allred said in his campaign launch video. “But the folks who cut corners and cut deals – well, they’re doing just fine.”

Allred said he will roll out of series of plans in the coming months during the campaign. The first plan is what he calls an “anti-corruption plan.”

“It’ll be the first of many steps we’re going to take to finally get Texans the leadership that we deserve,” Allred said.

This will be Allred’s second attempt at the U.S. Senate after a high-profile campaign in 2024 against U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Cruz defeated Allred by almost a million votes in November. Now Allred turns his attention to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn’s seat. The incumbent is already facing a difficult challenge in the Republican primary against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

A recent Texas Politics Project poll found neither Paxton nor Cornyn were polling favorably among Texas voters. The poll of 1,200 registered voters showed 29% of Texans had a favorable opinion of Paxton while 43% had an unfavorable opinion.

Cornyn’s numbers were even worse in the same poll, with only 23% saying they had a favorable opinion of the current U.S. Senator while 46% had an unfavorable opinion.

A recent report from Punchbowl News said a poll from the Senate Leadership Fund, which supports Cornyn’s reelection, found Cornyn was down 10 points to Paxton in May. That same poll also showed Paxton trailing Allred by one point in a general election.