Former Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick‘s stop in Texas is one of the first signs that his campaign activity might be ramping up. Patrick is considering a 2020 run for president. | Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images Deval Patrick steps into Texas House race

Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick will return to the campaign trail this weekend, stumping in Texas in one of the most competitive House races in the country.

The former two-term Democrat — and 2020 presidential prospect — will campaign Sunday with Democrat Colin Allred, a former NFL football player challenging GOP Rep. Pete Sessions in Texas’ 32nd Congressional District.


Patrick will help launch a block walk in Richardson, a Dallas-Fort Worth suburb, followed by a sit-down with campaign volunteers and fellows at campaign HQ, according to Hector Nieto, a consultant for the Allred campaign.

The district is regarded as one of the party’s top opportunities to pick off a seat currently held by a Republican — Hillary Clinton carried district in 2016.

Patrick has said he planned to stump this summer for candidates in elections where he can be helpful. But the Allred visit is one of the first signs that Patrick’s campaign activity might be ramping up.

Nieto said Patrick had been reaching out to organizations such as the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to see how he could be helpful to the Allred campaign, and “it worked out that he was going to be in Texas” for the NAACP conference.

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Patrick has told close advisers that he plans to decide whether he will run for president in 2020 by the end of the year , as first reported by POLITICO. He previously campaigned for Democrat Doug Jones’ successful Senate campaign against Republican Roy Moore in the contest to replace now-Attorney General Jeff Sessions in Alabama.

Patrick is also scheduled to deliver a speech at the NAACP’s national conference in San Antonio kicking off this weekend, where he’ll speak at the Clarence Mitchell Memorial Luncheon on Monday.

The former governor is also meeting with Rep. Beto O’Rourke, the El Paso Democrat who is running to unseat GOP Sen. Ted Cruz, a source close to Patrick confirmed to POLITICO. The O’Rourke campaign did not respond to an email asking for comment.

The former governor, currently working at investment firm Bain Capital, has kept a relatively low profile on the local and national political scene after leaving office. That changed this winter, when Patrick told a Kansas City radio host earlier this year that running for president is “on my radar screen,” kicking off speculation about if, where and how he would dive back into the political fray.



CORRECTION: This post has been updated to correct the name of the Texas congressional district, as a result of an editing error.