Beto O' Rourke Plans Run For Texas Governor In 2022

Austin TX

15 November, 2021

10:09 AM

Description

AUSTIN, TX — Democrat Beto O' Rourke has set his sights to run in Texas once again. This time, he plans to run for governor in 2022. O'Rourke announced his run Monday in a social media post, citing his reasons were due to failed leadership in Texas. Particularly, the failure of the state's power grid in February, which left millions without power and killed 210 people during a weekend winter freeze. "Together, we can push past the small and divisive politics that we see in Texas today — and get back to the big, bold vision that used to define Texas. A Texas big enough for all of us," O'Rourke said in a Twitter post. Live in Austin? Click here to subscribe to our free breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox and mobile devices. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and download our free mobile app on Android or iPhone. O'Rourke's announcement kicks off a third run for office in as many election cycles. The former El Paso congressman came into the spotlight after his run for U.S. Senate in 2018 when he challenged Senator Ted Cruz. Following his narrow loss, he had a short-lived presidential run in 2020. O'Rourke's return sets up one of 2022's highest-profile — and potentially most expensive — races for governor. His challenger, Republican and incumbent Greg Abbott is seeking a third term and has put Texas on the vanguard of hard-right policymaking in state capitals and emerged as a national figure. For most of his six years in office, Abbott has had an aura of political invincibility. But his job approval rating has slipped during the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 70,000 Texans, as well as a deadly winter blackout that darkened the nation's energy capital and a legislative session that passed new barriers to voting and effectively banned most abortions in the state. Abbott also aggressively bucked the Biden administration's pandemic policies, angering some of Texas' largest schools and employers by banning mask and vaccine mandates. (Photo by Rick Kern/Getty Images for MoveOn)Most recently, Abbott has made a commitment to tackling "pornography" in Texas schools, which has become a recent issue in Central Texas that attacks LGBTQ stories. A challenge from O'Rourke, a media-savvy former congressman with a record of generating attention and cash, could tempt Democrats nationwide to pour millions of dollars into trying — again — to flip Texas. The Democratic party struggled for months to identify a challenger to Abbott, resulting in a "Beto or bust" plan reflecting the enduring skepticism even in their own ranks. No other Democrats have entered the race or have flirted with challenging Abbott. Actor Matthew McConaughey, who lives in Austin, has teased a run for governor for months but has not said whether he would make one as a Republican or a Democrat. Democrats will face a challenge to flip the Lone Star State, particularly O'Rourke, who will once again be an underdog in his run. Although the state's growing population of Latino, young and college-educated voters is a good for Democrats, the party's spending blitz in the 2020 presidential election left them with nothing. While in years passed, Latinos have voted blue in presidential elections, a large majority on Texas' border switched red in 2020 because of their more conservative values on immigration and Second Amendment rights. Democrat Beto O'Rourke listens to a volunteer before a Texas Organizing Project neighborhood walk in West Dallas on June 9, 2021. O'Rourke is running for governor of Texas. The former El Paso congressman announced his decision Monday. It kicks off O'Rourke's third run for office in as many election cycles after a narrow loss for U.S. Senate in 2018 and a short-lived presidential run in 2020. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)If Democrats do not choose to modify their strategies in next year's midterm elections, they may struggle to win in Texas, which hasn't seen a Democratic governor since Ann Richards in 1990. The outlook for the party is even worse heading into next year's midterm elections. Freshly gerrymandered political maps, signed into law by Abbott in October, bolster Republicans' standing in booming suburban districts that have been drifting away from the party. That could mean fewer competitive races and lower turnout. "It's not going to be easy. But it is possible," O'Rourke said in an interview with The Associated Press ahead of his announcement. "I do believe, very strongly, from listening to people in this state that they're very unhappy with the direction that (Gov.) Greg Abbott has taken Texas." O'Rourke said Texans were "abandoned" in February by those who were elected to serve and look out for them, citing the issue has become a "symptom of a much larger problem." "Those in positions of public trust have stopped listening to, serving and paying attention to, and trusting the people of Texas. They're not focused on the things that we really want them to do like making sure we have a functioning electricity grid, or that we are creating the best jobs in America right here in Texas, or that we have world-class schools or that we make progress on the things that we actually agree on," O'Rourke said in his video announcement. I'm running for governor. Together, we can push past the small and divisive politics that we see in Texas today — and get back to the big, bold vision that used to define Texas. A Texas big enough for all of us. Join us: https://t.co/eMY5wwf6an pic.twitter.com/yrG1WOkpqk— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) November 15, 2021 Instead of focusing on improving these issues, as well as tackling Medicare and legalizing marijuana, O'Rourke said Texas leaders are focusing on extremist policies that "divide" Texans and "keep them apart." While the Democratic challenger faces many obstacles, O'Rourke argued that the broad coalition of voters that powered his near-upset in 2018, which included Republican moderates, could be formed again. "What I'm going to be focused on is listening to and bringing people together to do the big work before us," he said. "And obviously that first big job is is winning this election. But the voters and the votes are there." The Texas governor has entered the race with a $55 million campaign war chest, the biggest of any incumbent governor in the country. "The last thing Texans need is President Biden's radical liberal agenda coming to Texas under the guise of Beto O'Rourke," Abbott spokesman Mark Miner said following O'Rourke's announcement. "The contrast for the direction of Texas couldn't be clearer." The Associated Press contributed to this report.