Republican Ted Cruz gets another 2024 challenger in Democratic Sen. Roland Gutierrez

State Sen. Roland Gutierrez is running for the U.S. Senate, announcing officially on Monday he is challenging Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.

Gutierrez is a Democrat from San Antonio who also represents Uvalde and has been public in his push for what he calls common sense gun reform.

He faces north Texas Congressman Colin Allred for the Democratic nomination and the right to face two-term incumbent Cruz in the general election 16 months from now.

READ MORE: US Rep. Colin Allred preparing to challenge Ted Cruz in 2024, sources say

"We have so much rhetoric in Washington," Gutierrez told ABC13. "And we need to change that. And it's negative rhetoric. It's doing nothing to help us create and solve the problems of the basic bread basket for every American and every Texan. Ted Cruz is a cancer. He has done nothing but lambast, nothing but promote ill will and nothing that is effective policy for the people of Texas."

Gutierrez does not have to give up his seat in the Texas Senate to run. He previously served in the Texas House of Representatives and on San Antonio City Council.

"We need to make sure that we're looking at Medicaid expansion and getting rid of the ability of rogue governors like Greg Abbott from being able to deliver the basic goods and services of health care to people in Texas working class families," he said. "Ted Cruz could have done that, but he's refused to even aid us in that capacity. We're going to talk about health care. We're certainly going to talk about infrastructure."

He said he is running to focus on the issues that he says Cruz has not addressed, and he thinks they are issues about which most Texans care.

Cruz, who is seeking a third term, issued a statement this morning in which his spokesperson said that Gutierrez and north Texas Democrat Congressman Colin Allred, who announced his campaign in May and had impressive early fundraising numbers, can "slug it out for who can be the most radical leftist in the state."

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