Texas
Texas showdown: Sen. Ted Cruz steps up his game as conservative firebrand faces bruising re-election race
As he faces a second straight challenging re-election campaign, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas is upping his efforts.
The conservative firebrand senator running for a third six-year term representing the Lone Star State in the Senate will team up Saturday in Houston with staff, volunteers, grassroots supporters, friends and family for the official opening of his 2024 campaign headquarters.
The opening comes a couple of days after Cruz announced a large campaign cash haul over the past three months.
The senator brought in $9.7 million during the first quarter of 2024 fundraising, according to figures shared first with Fox News Wednesday. Cruz’s haul from his three fundraising committees was nearly double the $5.5 million he brought in the previous three months.
FIRST ON FOX: CRUZ HAULS IN NEARLY $10 MILLION THE PAST THREE MONTHS
Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas speaks at a donor conference hosted by the conservative Club for Growth March 3, 2023, in Palm Beach, Fla. (Fox News )
And the senator’s political team said that, as of the end of March, Cruz had $15.1 million cash on hand from his three fundraising committees. They noted that figure includes the amounts he has sent to the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), the campaign arm of the Senate GOP, and the Republican Party of Texas (RPT), which are dedicated to his race.
Campaign spokesperson Nick Maddux told Fox News the senator “is off to a very strong start this year as the momentum to get him across the finish line in November continues to increase across the entire Lone Star State.”
SIX KEY SENATE SEATS THAT COULD FLIP IN NOVEMBER
Cruz, who narrowly defeated Rep. Beto O’Rourke in a hard-fought 2018 Senate battle, is likely going to need every cent he raises, as he faces a bruising re-election bid against Democratic challenger Rep. Colin Allred.
Allred, a former NFL player, civil rights attorney and three-term congressman representing a suburban Dallas district, on Thursday nearly matched Cruz’s fundraising. His campaign announced he hauled in over $9.5 million during the first quarter.
Paige Hutchinson, Allred’s campaign manager, emphasized the fundraising “continues our momentum to build a strong campaign to win in November and send Ted Cruz packing for good.”
Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, arrives at the U.S. Capitol for the last votes of the week April 20, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Allred likely received a boost from President Biden, who told top-dollar donors during a fundraiser in Dallas last month, “You’ve got to elect Colin as your next senator … so Ted Cruz joins another loser, Donald Trump.”
The former president is the GOP’s 2024 presumptive presidential nominee.
Cruz, who was runner-up to Trump in the 2016 Republican presidential nomination race, flirted early this cycle with another White House run before confirming in late 2022 he would seek a third term in the Senate.
The senator on Saturday will join with volunteers and staff, who will spend the day phone banking and door knocking on behalf of Cruz. The campaign says it has already surpassed 1 million direct voter contacts and notes it’s on track to hit historic grassroots numbers.
WHERE THE PRESIDENTIAL AND SENATE SHOWDOWNS STAND IN TEXAS
“Sen. Cruz will continue to pound the pavement day in and day out, meeting and talking to Texans in every corner of the state to keep Texas Texas and ensure that we remain the nation’s bastion of liberty,” Maddux emphasized.
O’Rourke raised significantly more than Cruz in 2018 in a high-profile race that grabbed plenty of national attention.
In an interview last week on Fox News’ “Hannity,” Cruz argued that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the top Democrat in the chamber, “has been explicit. He’s coming after Texas. I am his No. 1 target in the entire country.”
Cruz argued the Democrats “are going to spend more than $100 million this year. … They’re flooding millions of dollars into Texas.”
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, during votes in the U.S. Capitol Dec. 5, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The senator has long been a fan favorite of conservatives across the country due to his numerous broadsides against Democrats, from President Barack Obama early in his tenure to his attacks on President Biden in recent years.
But Cruz, with the recent launch of “Democrats for Cruz,” is showcasing his bipartisan chops as he aims to attract left-leaning voters.
He’s also trying to paint Allred as a partisan who votes in lockstep with his party.
But Allred’s campaign counters that his bid is about “rejecting the divisiveness of Ted Cruz and fighting for Texans’ freedoms.”
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Democrats hold a slim 51-49 majority in the chamber, which includes three independent senators who caucus with the Democratic conference.
That means Republicans need a net gain of either one or two seats to win back the majority, depending on which party controls the White House after this year’s presidential election.
The math and the map favor the GOP in 2024. Democrats are defending 23 of the 34 seats up for grabs. Three of those seats are in red states Trump carried in 2020 — West Virginia, Montana and Ohio.
Democrats are also defending an open seat in West Virginia after Sen. Joe Manchin announced late last year he would not seek re-election.
Five other blue-held seats are in key swing states narrowly carried by President Biden in 2020 — Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
In blue-state Maryland, Senate Republicans scored a recruiting success with popular former GOP Gov. Larry Hogan.
Texas and Florida, where incumbent Sen. Rick Scott is seeking re-election, appear to be the only competitive GOP-held seats up for grabs this November.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Wednesday he has secured a settlement of bankruptcy claims against genetic testing company 23andMe stemming from a 2023 data breach that exposed personal information, including some genetic ancestry data, of 6.9 million customers worldwide.
Paxton’s office said the settlement includes $150 million for a multistate coalition of 42 states. But because of limited funds in 23andMe’s bankruptcy estate and competing claims, the states’ recovery will be $18 million paid immediately, with Texas receiving $1,266,860.
23andMe disclosed in October 2023 that attackers had accessed accounts affecting 6.9 million consumers. Some of the information was later posted for sale on the dark web, according to Paxton’s office, which said the company learned of the breach months after the data became publicly available. The office said 23andMe initially denied a breach and later blamed consumers’ account settings and password practices.
Paxton joined a multistate investigation that concluded 23andMe used unreasonable security practices and failed to implement adequate safeguards against hacking, the office said.
23andMe filed for bankruptcy protection in March 2025. Paxton’s office said the settlement incorporates privacy and cybersecurity requirements, including enhanced security standards, comprehensive risk assessments and creation of an independent advisory board, along with enforcement of state privacy laws and continued consumer data deletion rights.
“Companies that collect and profit from Texans’ most personal information have a legal duty to protect it,” Paxton said in a statement.
The company also agreed to a $46.75 million class-action settlement in the bankruptcy case for affected U.S. consumers who submitted claims by Feb. 17, 2026, Paxton’s office said.
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.
The Texas Longhorns entered the 2025 season with more expectations than any team has had to deal with in recent memory.
Many among the media were ready to crown the team and quarterback Arch Manning before they even played one game. Of course, those unrealistic expectations were never met, even though the team finished with a 10-3 record and a Citrus Bowl win over the Michigan Wolverines.
2026 is heading in the same direction for the Longhorns. Many believe head coach Steve Sarkisian has the most talented team in the country. But in order to fix the issues from this past season, the Longhorns needed to fix one issue that has cost them in the past.
Changing The Narrative
One of the biggest issues the Longhorns had last season was the play of the offensive line. It was apparent in the first game of the season against the Ohio State Buckeyes that Manning didn’t have the pocket time needed to make big plays.
This offseason, Coach Sarkisian went out and found two massive transfer portal additions that should completely change the narrative on this offensive line.
It starts with potential starting right tackle Melvin Siani. Siani has spent time with the Temple Owls and last season with the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
The Longhorns are set at left tackle with Trevor Goosby, who could play himself into being a top 10 pick in the 2027 NFL Draft. If the team can get competent play from Siani, the offense will be able to open up the playbook, and the world may finally see Manning at his college peak.
The Longhorns also went out and found a potential fix at left guard for the 2026 season. Western Kentucky Hilltoppers transfer Laurence Seymore could be another strong patch for the holes in the offensive line.
After spending the first two seasons of his college career with the Miami Hurricanes, Seymore made stops with the Akron Zips and the Hilltoppers.
Of course, the one concern with Seymore is wondering if he can compete at the SEC level coming from the C-USA.
This season for the Longhorns starts and stops with the play of Manning. Coach Sarkisian and the rest of this coaching staff understood that protecting their quarterback was the most important goal when building the 2026 roster.
The Longhorns are going to be leaning on veteran talent to protect their quarterback, and it may very well be the best decision they made this offseason.
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