There are few politicians who, within their own states, carry such high expectations. Stacey Abrams of Georgia, the Democrat to whom O’Rourke is most frequently compared, also lost a statewide election in 2018 and is now considering running for governor. But there are now two other prominent Democrats in her state — Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, who won runoff elections in the national spotlight in January. In Texas, there are the Castro brothers, Joaquin and Julián, and Lina Hidalgo, the Harris County judge. But none of those Democrats has the profile or fundraising record O’Rourke has.
For the most part, Democrats here don’t seem to care that a loss to Abbott could hurt O’Rourke’s personal future. O’Rourke is a fundraising juggernaut, and if he entered the race he would give the state party a draw at the top of the ticket, likely sucking millions of Democratic dollars into Texas and helping to turn out voters who would support other Democrats on the ballot. There’s a chance O’Rourke wins. And there’s a chance that a loss, if it’s close enough, would keep O’Rourke’s promise alive, and not dampen enthusiasm for him two years later.
To Democrats still smarting from Republican victories in the state in 2020, if all O’Rourke’s candidacy did was help to flip a Texas legislative seat or House race, it might be worth it.
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