Second gentleman Doug Emhoff will campaign in Texas next week on behalf of Democrats
Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, plans a two-day campaign swing in Texas beginning Monday to take part in a get-out-the-vote rally and to raise money on behalf of Democrats in advance of the Nov. 5 election.
The rally, scheduled Monday in San Antonio, will feature Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Colin Allred along with the city's mayor, Ron Nirenberg, as well as former Mayor Julián Castro and his twin brother, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro. Tuesday's events will include stops in Austin and in Houston. The venues and programs were not publicly announced Thursday.
Republicans, who hold all statewide offices in Texas and majorities in both chamber of the Legislature, said the visit by the husband of the Democratic presidential nominee would do little to change the political landscape in the state.
"We welcome Doug Emhoff wasting time by visiting Texas," said state GOP Chairman Abraham George in a statement. "Texas is, and will remain solidly Republican. We are well on our way to knocking on over 100,000 doors in targeted flippable races."
With national polls showing the presidential race neck-and-neck, top Texas Democrats have said the ticket of Harris and vice presidential nominee and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz were unlikely to expend significant resources in the state that is widely expected to remain in the GOP column in November.
University of Texas at San Antonio political science professor Jon Taylor, however, said Emhoff's visit makes at least some political sense, if for no other reason than to tap the checking accounts of the state's Democratic donors for money that could be spent in the swing states that will likely decide the election.
"I would say he's definitely (coming) here to raise money, definitely to help down-ballot races, given that a lot of polling shows Allred within 10 to 5 points of Ted Cruz," Taylor said, referring to the incumbent two-term Republican senator.
In addition to Allred and the other well-known Democrats who will be joining Emhoff, two Democratic state House candidates running in Republican-held but competitive districts anchored in San Antonio are also scheduled to be part of Monday's program.
Democrat Kristian Carranza, a political newcomer, is challenging two-term Republican John Luhan in House District 118. Luhan scratched out his 2022 victory by fewer than 2,000 votes in the race that drew about 50,000 people to the polls. Laurel Jordan Swift, also a Democratic first-time candidate, is looking to unseat three-term Republican Steve Allison in District 121. Allison won reelection by a more comfortable 5-point margin two years ago.
The Allred-Cruz matchup is Texas' top statewide race of the 2024 cycle. Allred is a three-term member of the U.S. House from Dallas who entered politics after a four-year career as an NFL linebacker. So far, Allred has sought to present himself as a political centrist, hoping to siphon independent and perhaps even moderate GOP voters from Cruz. Allred was given a prime-time speaking slot at last month's Democratic National Convention , where he offered his full-throated support of the Harris-Walz ticket. But unlike many of the other speakers in Chicago, he stopped short of ad hominem attacks on Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
Cruz, who narrowly won reelection in 2018 to then-El Paso U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, has sought to define Allred as a Harris acolyte who is out of step with most Texas voters.
"Colin Allred might as well be campaigning with Kamala herself," Cruz campaign spokeswoman Macarena Martinez said in a statement to the American-Statesman. "I'm sure the Democrats think they're being strategic by sending her husband instead of her. Still, the fact remains that Emhoff is just a mouthpiece for Kamala and represents all of the terrible policies an Allred-Harris partnership would bring."
Taylor said that by sending Emhoff to Texas, Democrats are likely looking to thumb their noses at the GOP's explicit confidence in keeping the state firmly in its grip.
"It's got to be a case of the Harris campaign believes they may not win Texas, but they may be competitive," Taylor said. "Therefore, 'Let's at least send the second gentleman there, raise some money (and) get people fired up.' I don't think it's a bad strategy, personally."
The Texas Democratic Party is billing the San Antonio event as a "Freedom to Vote" rally under the title of "Texas Offense."
"We won't be intimidated," the state party said in a news release announcing Emhoff's visit. "Texans are ready to stand up for their rights, elect Colin Allred and Democrats up and down the ballot, and make their voices heard at the ballot box this November."
