Texas Voter Guide

Make voting harder or easier?

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. SENATE

Colin Allred (D)

Supports "making it easier" to vote. Opposes restricting "access to polling places." Supports voting by mail and early voting. Voted to expand registration and voting access, and make states get federal preclearance for voting law changes.

Ted Cruz (R) — Incumbent 

Opposed banning states from restricting voting access, saying it "strikes down virtually every voter integrity law" and allows "ballot harvesting." Would require citizenship proof for mail-in voter registration. Opposed expanding voting access.

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. PRESIDENT

Kamala Harris (D)

Easier. Pass bills to protect voting rights and make voting and registration easier. Biden administration directed federal agencies to help people register.

Donald Trump (R) 

Harder. Has long supported stronger voter ID requirements. Sued to bar ballot drop boxes. Encouraged Republicans to vote early but said early ballots "get lost" or are "phony."

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. VICE PRESIDENT

Tim Walz (D)

Easier. Approved automatic voter registration, pre- registration for 16- & 17-year-olds, and permanent absentee voting. Restored voting rights for ex-cons.

JD Vance (R) 

Harder. Supports voter ID and ending early and "mass mail-in voting." Proposed giving parents an extra vote per child, with parents deservng more voting power Easier. Approved automatic voter registration, pre- registration for 16- & 17-year-olds, and permanent absentee voting. Restored voting rights for ex-cons. than the childless.

How to ensure effectiveness and fairness in law enforcement?

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. SENATE

Colin Allred (D)

Supports "common-sense reforms that will restore trust in our law enforcement and ensure justice." Voted for holding police accountable, addressing racial profiling, and limiting use of force. Sponsored a bill to encourage police use of "de-escalation tools."

Ted Cruz (R) — Incumbent 

Police are "under attack." Sponsored bills strengthening protections for police and having recruits work in their own communities. Said January 6 U.S. Capitol stormers were prosecuted more than Black Lives Matter protesters he called "terrorists. "

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. PRESIDENT

Kamala Harris (D)

Police are dedicated public servants. As a prosecutor increased felony convictions by one third. But "public safety requires community trust." Has supported better training, banning choke holds, and prosecuting police misconduct.

Donald Trump (R) 

Police are "under siege." Cut back active federal oversight of excess force, though supported a database to track it. Admires Chinese approach of quick trials and a death penalty for drug dealers so there will be a "zero drug problem."

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. VICE PRESIDENT

Tim Walz (D)

Funded $43 million toward combating violent crime and limited the use of no-knock warrants. Allocated $300 million for public safety aid to local governments. Banned chokeholds.

JD Vance (R) 

"Let's declare war on the violent crime on our streets." "Hire 100,000 additional cops." Keep "qualified immunity," restricting lawsuits against enforcement? police officers. They're "afraid to do their jobs."

Raise federal minimum from $7.25 an hour?

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. SENATE

Colin Allred (D)

Yes. "I'm running for Senate to fight for $15/hr." In 2019 voted to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour.

Ted Cruz (R) — Incumbent 

No. Opposed raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Wage increases mean that people lose jobs; "the most vulnerable" are hurt.

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. PRESIDENT

Kamala Harris (D)

Yes. Supports Congress raising the national minimum wage to $15. Biden administration raised to $15 for federal contractors.

Donald Trump (R) 

No. A $15 minimum wage would "eliminate jobs." Threatened to veto. Questioned need for a federal minimum wage: let the states decide.

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. VICE PRESIDENT

Tim Walz (D)

Yes. "$15 is an important place to start, but… isn't enough for families." Eliminated a lower minimum wage for small business employees.

JD Vance (R) 

Mixed. Would gradually raise to $11 by 2028. In 2016 called a $15 minimum "a medicine worse than the disease."

Loosen or tighten gun regulations?

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. SENATE

Colin Allred (D)

Tighten. Supports "common-sense" laws to "reduce gun violence and save lives." Voted to implement "red flag" laws, raise the legal age to buy some rifles, & expand background checks. Sponsored an assault weapons ban.

Ted Cruz (R) — Incumbent 

Loosen. Opposed bipartisan gun safety bill, with expanded background checks; it would "keep guns from law-abiding owners." Wants "more police officers" in schools. The Second Amendment "shall not be infringed."

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. PRESIDENT

Kamala Harris (D)

Tighten. "Every person deserves the freedom to live safe from gun violence." Supported the bipartisan gun safety bill and required background checks for gun show & online sales.

Donald Trump (R) 

Loosen. To NRA, "no one will lay a finger on your firearms." Plans to roll back Biden gun restrictions. Reversed Obama-era background checks for those with mental illnesses.

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. VICE PRESIDENT

Tim Walz (D)

Tighten. "I'm a veteran, a hunter, and a gun owner… But it's about keeping our kids safe." Signed universal background checks for gun sales and a red flag law. Increased the penalty for straw gun purchases from a gross misdemeanor to a felony.

JD Vance (R) 

Loosen. "I will fight the gun grabbers." Would "ABOLISH the ATF [Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.]" Expanded background checks won't solve mass shootings.

Loosen or tighten environmental regulations?

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. SENATE

Colin Allred (D)

Tighten. Voted for fund to plug orphaned oil and gas wells and to track greenhouse gases. Voted to keep aid to low-income areas for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and to keep a tax on methane emissions.

Ted Cruz (R) — Incumbent 

Loosen. Opposed EPA's air quality regulations. Opposed a NASA rule requiring contractors to disclose greenhouse gas emissions. Sponsored a bill to repeal an EPA limit on vehicle emissions.

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. PRESIDENT

Kamala Harris (D)

Tighten. Supports "environmental justice." In CA prosecuted polluters. Biden admin issued more than 100 environmental regulations.

Donald Trump (R) 

Loosen. Weakened or ended more than 125 environmental protections, including wetlands and wildlife. Will reverse Biden policies

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. VICE PRESIDENT

Tim Walz (D)

Tighten. Signed a ban on toxic "forever chemicals," one of the world's strictest. Gave Pollution Control more power to hold severe polluters accountable. Increased protection for historically polluted neighborhoods.

JD Vance (R) 

Loosen. "Environmental justice" policies are making jobs be shipped to China. Opposed EPA restrictions on steel-making emissions. Voted to limit Fisheries Service establishing critical habitat for endangered species.

Ban or legal?

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. SENATE

Colin Allred (D)

Legal. Would work "to protect the freedoms and rights of women." Calls Texas's abortion ban "cruel." Sponsored bills to enshrine federal rights to abortion and out-of-state services.

Ted Cruz (R) — Incumbent 

Ban. Supreme Court reversing Roe v. Wade is "a massive victory for life." Opposed putting the right to abortion into federal law. In 2016 said there should be no exceptions for rape or incest. Sponsored a bill criminalizing performing abortions after 20 weeks.

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. PRESIDENT

Kamala Harris (D)

Legal. "Every woman should have the right to make decisions about her own body." "This fight is about freedom." With Biden, strengthened abortion pill access and abortion patient protections, overturned Trump Planned Parenthood federal funding ban. Would sign national abortion rights bill if Congress passed

Donald Trump (R) 

Ban. "After 50 years of failure, I was able to kill Roe v. Wade." Did so by appointing three antiabortion Supreme Court Justices. It was "a miracle." States should decide for themselves, potentially monitoring women's pregnancies and prosecuting women for getting abortions. Abortion is "really not that big of an issue."

CANDIDATES FOR U.S. VICE PRESIDENT

Tim Walz (D)

Legal. Enshrined the right to abortion and reproductive health care into state law. Signed a bill to protect MN abortion access for out-of-state patients. "Freedom is on the march in Minnesota."

JD Vance (R) 

Ban. In 2022 said should be "illegal nationally." No exceptions for rape or incest. "Two wrongs don't make a right." Now says leave to the states. Opposed Biden's reproductive care privacy rule.