Rep. Colin Allred (D) will lead Texas Democrats in their November attempt to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R). 

Allred was projected to beat his more progressive opponent, state Sen. Roland Gutierrez (D), in the primary, according to Decision Desk HQ.

No Democrat has won a Senate Race in Texas since 1988 — but with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) retiring this year, capturing Cruz’s seat remains one of the national party’s best hopes of holding the Senate.

Allred, a former linebacker for the Tennessee Titans, represented North Dallas in Congress before joining the race for Senate.

He has a history of winning contested elections, beating out Democratic challengers in the 2018 primary and defeating a suburban Republican incumbent that November in what had been considered a staunchly Republican district.

In squaring up for a future campaign against Cruz, he framed the race as one about abortion — and in February attacked the Republican senator for his lack of support for in vitro fertilization.

“Texans who want nothing more than to start a family are scared, and Ted Cruz’s dangerous record has put their rights and freedoms at risk,” Allred said.

Gutierrez, however, challenged him on the grounds that he didn’t offer Texas voters a distinct choice from Republicans.

Allred, he said, “likes to play this moderate game, holding hands with Republicans.” 

As Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has used the high numbers of migrant crossings to create a national narrative of a border in crisis, Allred has sought to thread the needle — voting in January with Republicans to censure President Biden for “open-borders policies.”

“The Democratic nominee that goes up against Ted Cruz should fight tooth and nail against Trump’s dangerous so-called policies,” Gutierrez said in a statement. 

“If our nominee agrees with Trump and Ted Cruz’s idea of border security, then we’re in a hell of a lot of trouble,” he said.