Democratic Texas Rep. Colin Allred, who is running to unseat Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in 2024, has broken a pledge to voters every year since he took office in 2019.
Allred, who has held his seat since 2019, failed to uphold the Town Hall Pledge he signed in 2018 stipulating that he host four town halls for constituents each calendar year. Each town hall would be “free and open to the general public and press,” would be announced more than two days ahead of time at a venue with “reasonable accommodations and ample room” and would include “at least 30 minutes for open, unscreened questions from the audience.”
“I proudly signed the Town Hall Project pledge,” Allred wrote on Twitter on Feb. 19, 2018, while campaigning to represent Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. “As your member of Congress, I will listen to the people I represent and give you the opportunity to have your voice heard. This is something that has been missing in this district for far too long.”
I proudly signed the @townhallproject pledge. As your member of Congress, I will listen to the people I represent and give you the opportunity to have your voices heard. This is something that has been missing in this district for far too long. #TX32 pic.twitter.com/5kjVKHwpfW
— Colin Allred (@ColinAllredTX) February 20, 2018
Allred last hosted an in-person “town hall” four years ago on March 6, 2020. The event focused on “the latest on the coronavirus and resources for the public.” Capacity was limited at the venue, and the congressman directed those who could not enter to watch the event via Facebook livestream. (RELATED: ‘Take This Guy Down’: Dallas Mayor Tells Ted Cruz He Got ‘Panicked’ Phone Calls After Switching To The GOP)
Since then, Allred has held several town halls via telephone, but the Town Hall Project’s parent organization regards such events as “sham town halls” and does not count them toward the pledge.
While Allred hosted a few town halls in 2019, questions appeared to be screened by his political allies at every event. Video from one town hall that year shows an audience member being shut down for asking a question that was not pre-approved about how campaign funding impacted congressional actions. She was told to “write down” her question and that Allred would “talk to [her] afterwards,” leaving her question unanswered.
Cruz’s challenger repeatedly emphasized town halls as a top issue during his 2018 campaign, going as far as to repeatedly commit to holding “a monthly town hall.”
The Town Hall Project is part of Indivisible, a group the Democratic congressman met with, praised and thanked for helping him win in 2018. Indivisible supports initiatives to defund the police and to defund Immigration and Customs Enforcement.