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Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Beto O'Rourke says ‘if' Texans want him to run for U.S. Senate, ‘yes I will'
Former U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, defeated for U.S. Senate and Texas governor in recent elections but a prodigious national fundraiser, now says that 'if' Texans want him to run for Senate again in 2026, 'then yes I wlll.' It may be the closest O'Rourke, an El Paso Democrat, has come to announcing for what is expected to be a $200 million-plus campaign against either incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn or challenger Attorney General Ken Paxton, a McKinney Republican. O'Rourke, then a member of the U.S. House, lost to incumbent Sen. Ted Cruz by 3 percentage points in a 2018 election that lifted him into the national spotlight. In 2022, he lost to Gov. Greg Abbott by 11 points. He raised nearly $180 million for the two campaigns. The 2026 Democratic nominee for Senate will be expected to raise as much as $100 million. In 2019, he launched a 2020 campaign for president. He dropped out that November, a year before the election, but was considered a possible running mate for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden until Biden committed to choosing a Black woman for the ticket. Biden ultimately chose California Sen. Kamala Harris. Speaking to several hundred people April 26 in Denton, Texas, O'Rourke rallied voters at what was billed as a town hall for his voter mobilization organization, Powered by People. Asked in the Q-and-A after his speech whether he would run for Senate, O'Rourke grinned and said, 'I'm gonna infer from your question that you do not want Ken Paxton to be your next senator.' He went on to loud cheers: 'If ... this is what the people of Texas want — that it's the highest and best use of what I can give to you — then yes, I will.' Later, he told WFAA: 'I'm going to do whatever is most helpful for the people of Texas. ... I'm going to do whatever is the greatest good for the greatest number in this state. ' ... Whatever I can do, wherever I'm helpful, that's where I'm going to be.' It is one of the few times so far O'Rourke has directly mentioned running. So far, Democrats being discussed for the race include former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred of Dallas, who lost to Cruz in 2024 by 8 percentage points, and state Sen. Nathan Johnson of Dallas. Both are also considered along with state Sen. Roland Gutierrez of San Antonio as possible candidates for governor, lieutenant governor or for the open seat as attorney general. He spoke at length to the crowd at Anderson's Eatery & Distillery about the principles of American government, freedom and due process of law, and about the current administration and deportation policies of President Donald Trump. In an interview in recent days with The Dallas Morning News, O'Rourke said he would 'do whatever I can to be useful, and right now that is organizing, registering voters, recruiting and leading volunteers across the state. If at some point it makes sense to do something else, I'm open to it.' He also told The News that if Paxton beats Cornyn for the nomination in the March 2026 Republican Party primary, it would be a 'gift' to those who want to see a Democrat win. It was his second recent visit to North Texas. He spoke in mid-March in Mansfield for a smaller crowd. He also held town halls in Wichita Falls and in Fort Bend County, outside Houston, with former Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Beto O'Rourke to host Wichita Falls town hall on state, federal issues
WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — Former United States Representative Beto O'Rourke will host a Congressional and State Representative Town Hall Meeting at the Ray Clymer Exhibit Hall on Saturday. The doors will open at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 12, and the event will begin at 2 p.m. This is a chance for Texas to ask questions about state and federal issues and discuss America's future. A release from Powered by People, O'Rourke's voter registration and mobilization group made up of volunteers across the state, said that with so many important issues in the news, O'Rourke has been on the road to hear directly from fellow Texans and organize on the ground. This event is free and open to the public, but Powered by People asks that anyone planning to attend RSVP online. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
