A Texas judge puts the blame squarely on Tea Party Republican rhetoric for his decision to run for re-election as a Democrat in a campaign video he released on Sunday.

“Rational Republican beliefs have given way to ideological character assassination,” Bexar County Judge Carlo Key says in the video, over shots of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and other Republican lawmakers. “Pragmatism and principle have been overtaken by pettiness and bigotry. Make no mistake, I have not left the Republican party. It left me.”

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“I will not be a member of a party in which hate speech elevates candidates for higher office, rather than disqualifying them” Key says. “I cannot place my name on the ballot for a political party that is proud to destroy the lives of hundreds of thousands of federal workers over the vain attempt to repeal a law that will provide healthcare to millions of people throughout our country.”

“I’m proud to welcome Carlo today,” state Democratic Party chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement on Sunday. “Our party – the Texas Democratic Party – welcomes anyone ready to fight for a better future for all Texans.”