Former Texas Democratic Rep. Colin Allred weighed in on the Texas Senate race he withdrew from with an endorsement for Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX).
Allred announced his endorsement for Crockett in a video posted to X in which he blasted Texas state Rep. James Talarico for allegedly calling him a “mediocre black man.”
“I understand that James Talarico had the temerity and the audacity to say to a black woman that he had signed up to run against a mediocre black man, meaning me, not a formidable, intelligent black woman, meaning Jasmine Crockett,” Allred said.
Allred’s video came on Monday after a Texas political content creator made a video detailing an interaction she had with Talarico in which he made the comment, according to the Texas Tribune.
“If you want to compliment black women, just do it. Just do it,” Allred said in his video. “Don’t do it while also tearing down a black man. OK? We’ve seen that play before. We’re sick and tired of it. We’re tired of folks using praise for black women to mask criticism for black men.”
“Go vote for Jasmine Crockett,” Allred continued. “This man should not be our nominee for the United States Senate. I wasn’t going to get involved in this race, but listen, don’t come for me unless I send for you, OK, James? And keep my name out of your mouth while you’re at it.”
Talarico insisted in a response that his remarks were a “mischaracterization of a private conversation.”
“In my praise of Congresswoman Crockett, I described Congressman Allred’s method of campaigning as mediocre — but his life and service are not,” the state representative said. “I would never attack him on the basis of race. As a Black man in America, Congressman Allred has had to work twice as hard to get where he is. I understand how my critique of the Congressman’s campaign could be interpreted given this country’s painful legacy of racism, and I care deeply about the impact my words have on others.”
“I have always said that, despite our disagreements, I respect Congressman Allred. We’re all on the same team,” Talarico concluded.
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Allred was initially running in the 2026 Senate race but dropped his bid from the crowded primary in early December to run for the House in Texas’s 33rd district, just before Crockett announced her bid. Allred, a civil rights attorney and former NFL linebacker, previously represented Texas’s 32nd Congressional District before running for Senate in 2024 against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
Crockett and Talarico are the two main candidates in the Democratic primary, vying for the nomination to unseat senior Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who is facing a heated primary on his own against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX).
