Matthew Dowd, the chief strategist for George W. Bush’s 2004 reelection campaign, announced Wednesday that he is running for lieutenant governor of Texas — as a Democrat.

       In an announcement video, Dowd, who worked more recently as a political analyst for ABC News, takes aim at the Republican incumbent, Dan Patrick, detailing a lengthy list of purported shortcomings, both on policy and character.

       “The GOP politicians have failed us, especially the cruel and craven lieutenant governor,” Patrick says in the 2？-minute video. “He does not believe in the common good. ... He puts his ‘me’ over our ‘we.’”

       Although he is best known for helping steer a Republican president to reelection, Dowd’s biography on his new campaign website highlights his work for Texas Democrats earlier in his career before he switched parties in 1999.

       Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick falsely claims ‘African Americans who have not been vaccinated’ are driving covid surge

       That includes work on a campaign of former Texas lieutenant governor Bob Bullock, the last Democrat elected to the office in the state, in 1994.

       Advertisement

       Story continues below advertisement

       In his bio, Dowd also highlights his break with Bush in 2007 over his handling of the Iraq War and his identification as an independent afterward.

       Patrick, in his campaign literature, bills himself as “a preeminent voice for principled conservative policies both in Texas and across the nation,” and he has built a national fundraising base. Dowd tacitly acknowledged that advantage in a tweet Wednesday, saying that his campaign is “up against large sums of money.”

       In his announcement video, which opens with scenes of Dowd driving in Texas,where he has lived for nearly 40 years, he accuses Patrick of pursuing “culture wars” over issues such as abortion and race to the detriment of more pressing concerns facing voters.

       Story continues below advertisement

       “Enough is enough,” Dowd says. “We need more officials who tell the truth, who believe in public services, in common sense with common decency for the common good. ... We need to expect more from our politicians and demand those politicians align with our values. Dan Patrick believes in none of those, and that is why I am running.”

       Among other things, Dowd takes issue with Patrick’s handling of the coronavirus, his advocacy of a measure to make it easier to carry handguns in the aftermath of a mass shooting and his response to an electrical grid failure.