Colin Allred pushes back against Ted Cruz ad blitz: ‘I don’t want boys playing girls’ sports’

Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX) responded to a recent ad blitz by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) attacking his votes on LGBT legislation, accusing the Republican incumbent of misconstruing his record ahead of the November election.

Allred released a new ad Friday hitting back against Cruz's argument that the House Democrat's voting record shows support for transgender women, biological males who identify as female, using women’s restrooms and blurring the lines of “ the difference between boys and girls .” Allred accuses Cruz of “lying about my record because he can't defend his own.”

“Ted Cruz is lying again, but now he's lying about our children,” Allred said in his ad. “I'm a dad. I'm also a Christian. My faith has taught me that all kids are God's kids. So let me be clear, I don't want boys playing girls’ sports or any of this ridiculous stuff that Ted Cruz is saying.”

The video comes in response to at least three ads blasted by the Cruz campaign seeking to target Allred for his support of LGBT legislation, a blitz the Democrat has claimed is a misrepresentation of his current stance.

Those ads specifically hit Allred for cosponsoring the Equality Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Conservatives rejected the proposal, arguing it would harm women by dismantling sex-specific sports facilities and other "female-only spaces."

The Cruz campaign also pointed to Allred's vote against the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which sought to block transgender females from participating in women's sports and undoing a Biden administration rule that includes gender identity as a protected category under Title IX.

"Desperate much?" Cruz said in a post on X. "Colin Allred is gaslighting Texas voters and claiming that now he is suddenly against men competing in women’s sports. Too bad voting records are permanent and everyone can see he voted AGAINST the Protecting Women and Girls in Sports Act.

The Allred campaign did not immediately respond to questions from the Washington Examiner about whether Allred stood by those votes.

Recent polling shows a majority of Texas voters responding unfavorably to some transgender proposals, such as allowing transgender athletes to participate in women’s sports or allowing people under 18 to receive gender-transition care.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Polling on general LGBT protections from discrimination is mixed. More than 70% of Texas voters say they support general LGBT protections from discrimination, according to the Public Religion Research Institute. But another poll from the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin shows 68% of Texans support requiring school athletic participation to be based on biological sex.

The Texas Senate race is expected to lean Republican but has emerged as one of the more competitive Senate seats currently held by a GOP incumbent. Cruz holds a healthy lead over Allred in public polls, averaging about 4.8 points ahead of his Democratic challenger, according to RealClearPolitics.