Matthew McConaughey has drawn criticism after declining to endorse a Democratic candidate in Texas’s closely watched midterm elections, instead urging independent voters to take part in the ballot.
The 56-year-old actor, who is from Texas, made his appeal in a six-minute video released on Sunday, shortly before early voting began in the state.
“I’m not here today to endorse a candidate or party, I’m here endorsing two things: Fairness and reality. I believe in a fair fight,” he said.
McConaughey argued that independent voters should not be dismissed as being politically undecided or confined to the centre ground. “Independent does not mean you’re middle of the road, independent is the original road,” he said.
He added: “A true independent takes the best of both. That’s not indecision, that’s judgement.”
The actor’s comments prompted a backlash from people who accused him of encouraging voters to support long-shot candidates at a critical point in the election campaign.
Musician Howi Spangler said he liked McConaughey’s message but warned: “We’re at a critical moment here.” He added that “Trump-ism” was on the ballot and called for efforts to “neuter this administration”.
Other critics were more direct. One fellow Texan described the message as “dangerously reckless” and accused McConaughey of splitting the vote, while another wrote: “Not the f**king time to put this out there, especially when you’re a Texan.”
Several people questioned whether the actor was secretly a Republican and suggested he was attempting to draw support away from Democratic candidates. Others urged voters to back Democrats, with one writing: “We need to VOTE BLUE!!!”
McConaughey defended his position by saying that independent politicians could help challenge the dominance of both major parties in Congress.
“The reality is the midterms are coming… you do have more than two choices,” he said. He urged voters to study their ballots and decide whether candidates represented their views.
“I’m not telling you who to vote for,” he said. “I’m telling you to look at your ballot, study up, see if they represent you, what you believe in.”
His intervention comes as Texas faces closely fought contests, including a Senate race between Democrat James Talarico and Attorney General Ken Paxton. A win for Talarico would make him the first Democrat sent to the Senate from Texas in 33 years.
The state’s governor’s race is also tight, with Republican incumbent Greg Abbott narrowly ahead of Democrat Gina Hinojosa in a Siena Research Institute poll.
McConaughey described independent voters as “a permanent check to keep [Democrats and Republicans] both honest” and said America’s political identity was not confined to either party.
