Republican Ted Cruz of Texas wins a third term to the US Senate

HOUSTON (AP) — Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas won reelection Tuesday, defeating U.S. Rep. Colin Allred and Democrats’ latest try at ending decades of GOP dominance in the booming state that was thrust this election year to the center of battles over immigration and abortion.

Cruz, 53, secured a third term following another expensive reelection campaign, six years after only narrowly beating Beto O’Rourke. This time around, Cruz implored Republicans to take his race seriously. He tried recasting himself to Texas voters as a get-things-done legislator, far from his reputation as an unapologetic firebrand with national ambitions.

Although votes were still being tallied early Wednesday, Cruz was flirting with a double-digit lead over Allred, a margin far greater than his win over O’Rourke by less than 3 percentage points. Cruz’s victory helped Republicans secure control of the U.S. Senate for the first time in four years.

Walking out to the song “Eye of the Tiger,” Cruz addressed his supporters Tuesday night at his watch party in Houston.

“Tonight the people of Texas have spoken, and their message rings clear as a bell across our great state: Texas will remain Texas,” Cruz said to cheers from the crowd, many of whom held signs that read “Keep Texas Texas.”

Cruz thanked his wife and his supporters. Cruz also thanked Allred for a hard-fought campaign and pledged to protect the freedoms and values of all Texans, including those who didn’t support him.

“I want to say to all of those who didn’t support me, you have my word I will fight for you, your jobs, your safety and for your constitutional rights,” he said.

Cruz, who emphasized the importance of law and order on the campaign trail, was flanked on stage by a prominent Democratic supporter -- Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg, the top prosecutor in Texas’ most populous county.

Allred, a former NFL linebacker who would have been Texas’ first Black senator, carried a moderate banner while mostly keeping both Vice President Kamala Harris and progressive supporters at arm’s length. He touted the endorsements of Republicans — including former Rep. Liz Cheney — and ran as a champion of abortion rights in a state with one of the nation’s strictest bans.

In his concession speech at his watch party in Dallas, Allred said he called Cruz and congratulated him on his victory.

“It shouldn’t be remarkable to have to admit defeat,” he said. “You can’t just be a patriot when your side wins. Tonight we didn’t win, but we will continue to be patriots.”

His campaign drew criticism early on from some Democrats who grew restless with Allred’s strategy of not packing his schedule with raucous rallies or investing more in smaller corners of Texas, including cities along Texas’ border with Mexico.

Cruz fared significantly better against Allred than he did against O’Rourke six years ago, including a much stronger performance in largely Hispanic counties along the U.S.-Mexico border.

It was the latest failed attempt for Texas Democrats, who haven’t won a statewide race in 30 years, the country’s longest losing streak.

Despite Texas’ reliably red reputation, Democrats had hoped to take advantage of the state’s shifting demographics that include growing Hispanic and Black populations and an influx of residents from other states.

Four in 10 Texas voters said the economy and jobs is the top issue facing the country, according to AP VoteCast, a sweeping survey of more than 110,000 voters nationally, including more than 4,500 voters in Texas. About 2 in 10 Texas voters said immigration is the most pressing issue, and about 1 in 10 named abortion.

Cruz, who ran for president in 2016, originally came to the Senate after a stint as Texas’ solicitor general. He launched a popular podcast called “Verdict” in 2020 that defended then-President Donald Trump during his impeachment.

Allred was a star high school athlete from Dallas who played linebacker at Baylor University in Waco before a career in the NFL and then as a civil rights attorney. He also had experience defeating a Republican incumbent, having won a U.S. House seat in Dallas in 2018 that was held for more than two decades by GOP U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions.