A New Playbook For Texas Democrats

Every sports fan in Texas is familiar with the expression “the momentum has shifted.” It comes when a team that has been down and out mounts a comeback, and the announcers react to the changing narrative on the field (or court, rink or pitch).

As Texans gear up for another major election, the sports metaphors seem fitting as the Democrats, who have not held statewide office in a generation, are being led by a former NFL player. With less than seven weeks until Election Day, there is a twinge of hope and enthusiasm that hasn’t been since 2018 when Beto O’Rourke came within 222,000 votes of beating Ted Cruz.

Now Cruz’s challenger is the former Baylor Bear and Tennessee Titan Colin Allred, who entered Congress by flipping a north Dallas seat in 2018. This election cycle the Texas Democratic Party is taking cues from a different playbook. Earlier this summer the TDP announced a coordinated campaign they were calling the “Texas Offense.” That integrated approach to campaigning links together candidates and grassroots efforts in a way that hasn’t been seen in quite some time.

The Texas Signal recently caught up with Monique Alcala, the Executive Director of the Texas Democratic Party, about how she’s feeling with less than seven weeks until the election. “I feel really good because we are doing a hard thing,” she told us.

There has been some trepidation among those in the state who feel Allred’s campaign is a shadow of what O’Rourke created in 2018. But while Alcala acknowledges that “Beto spoiled everybody,” she noted that it wouldn’t make sense for Allred to be making appearances throughout the state and not build infrastructure. Every event that the campaign puts on has organizing support behind it, including volunteer signups or commit to vote cards. It’s a push for Allred, but also candidates running up and down the ballot throughout the state.

The change of strategy is something Alcala and the rest of the state party are leaning into. “Colin played defense his whole career and now he’s on offense.” That new offensive shift also makes sense given the change at the very top-of-the-ticket from Democrats with Vice President Kamala Harris. 

With enthusiastic Texans on the grassroots level increasing, the coordinated campaign is a useful tool. “The [volunteers] were already there, but we just needed to create a structure to support them,” said Alcala. She pointed out several local candidates, including two young women looking to flip House seats in Averie Bishop and Kristian Carranza, that have had tremendous success in recruiting young volunteers.

Cassandra Hernandez is also witnessing an influx of young volunteers in her race in HD-115, which includes parts of Dallas and several other north Texas cities. The district was previously represented by Julie Johnson, who flipped it in 2018 against Matt Rinaldi. Johnson is now running in the congressional seat vacated by Allred.

 “The whole dynamic of what November is going to look like has really changed for everybody,” said Hernandez in an interview with Texas Signal. She also mentioned that she has seen firsthand an increased participation in area Democratic clubs, as well as a new excitement from the younger generation. Hernandez also said that last month’s DNC Convention was a major talking point for staff and volunteers. There are also over 25 members of the south Asian community working as interns for her campaign. For them, seeing Harris as the presidential nominee has been inspiring.

As she looks to become the first Democratic state representative for the district since Johnson, Hernandez has also been very intentional coordinating her campaign with many of the judicial races, including for the Court of Appeals and the Texas Supreme Court. “Being a lawyer, I know how incredibly important our judicial system is, especially in the state of Texas.”

When it comes to the issues she’s hearing from voters, Hernandez reports that the top concern is public education. Passing a voucher bill is a major agenda item for Greg Abbott and his Republican allies in the next legislative session, especially after they orchestrated primary campaigns on many rural Republicans who did not want to see money taken from their schools. 

With early voting beginning Monday, October 21, campaigns in Texas are hitting their overdrive. Texas Offense will be holding a “Freedom to Vote” rally in San Antonio on September 23 with Allred, Carranza, Mayor Ron Nirenberg, and Second Gentlemen Doug Emhoff. And Alcala promises more strategic events to turn out as many voters as possible all the way until Tuesday, November 5.