It will be the first time the two candidates have been face to face since O’Rourke confronted Abbott in Uvalde after the shooting, which drew a mix of boos and cheers from the crowd at the time. Villalba believes the fortunes of the former El Paso congressman are in the hands of newly registered women voters and whether he can close the gap in rural counties.įriday’s debate is in Edinburg, along the southern border, where Abbott and Republicans are trying to make aggressive inroads with Hispanic voters after the region, traditionally a Democratic stronghold, made big swings toward then-President Donald Trump in 2020. Villalba, who now runs the Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation, said O’Rourke has had to overcome “baggage” from his presidential campaign.
“But to do that you have to be aggressive and take large risks.” “If Beto can coax Abbott into a moment where there’s a stark difference on, say, gun control I think that can have a big impact,” said Jason Villalba, a former Republican state lawmaker. O’Rourke, shrugging off recent polls that showed him trailing, pointed to traditionally conservative Kansas rejecting an abortion ban and Democrats winning special congressional elections in New York and Alaska as a sign of a shift in the electorate heading into November’s midterms. The Uvalde school shooting that killed 19 children and two teachers has also elevated emotions in the race, with grieving parents scolding Abbott and O’Rourke swearing at a heckler who laughed over gun control. But as Texas Democrats also know, those same issues have failed to carry them in past elections.Ī new Texas abortion ban is threatening GOP support with women and has already caused stumbles for Abbott over unpopular restrictions that make no exceptions for rape victims. Like many Democrats running in November, O’Rourke is drawing on outrage over abortion access and mass shootings, issues that have energized voters elsewhere. “This game ain’t over yet, and we’ll see how close it is when all is said and done,” he told reporters this month.
The Democrat emphasized that Abbott started running television spots before his campaign, which has pulled in at least $30 million and has put the two-term governor in the rare position of being outraised.Ībbott, who wants to stomp out Democrats’ latest attempt to flip America’s biggest Republican-led state, isn’t ready to say this may be his tightest race. “Here’s the way I see it: Most Texans are just beginning to tune into this election,” O’Rourke said in an interview.
With early voting set to begin in just over three weeks, some O’Rourke supporters are looking for significant swings during the debate, which the former 2020 presidential candidate knows better than most can leave a lasting impression. That raises the stakes for O’Rourke on Friday night in his only debate against Abbott, who has tried to refocus the race to his hard-line immigration measures on the U.S.-Mexico border as anger in Texas over a new abortion ban and the Uvalde school massacre continues flaring. Greg Abbott with six weeks until Election Day, Nov. While a road trip through college campuses showed how the Democrat continues to draw big crowds - a photo line at the University of Texas snaked across an outdoor plaza in 90-degree heat - O’Rourke is still trying to close in on Republican Gov. AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Beto O’Rourke spent his 50th birthday this week behind the wheel of his pickup in Texas, fast approaching a big moment in his uphill climb for governor.
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