Political analyst Bill Schneider predicted on Wednesday that if Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D) wins his Texas Senate race against the famous Republican incumbent, he will be on a national ticket in the near future.
“If he wins that seat, beats Ted Cruz, he’s going to be on a national Democratic ticket very, very quickly,” Schneider told Hill.TV’s Joe Concha on “What America’s Thinking.”
“He has a lot of charm, he’s good-looking, and he has a very liberal message,” he added.
O’Rourke is locked in a tight race with Cruz in deep-red Texas, which hasn’t elected a Democrat to statewide office in decades.
An Emerson College poll released last week showed Cruz with a 1-point lead over O’Rourke, well within the margin of error.
The Cook Political Report last month shifted the race from its “likely Republican” column to “lean Republican.”
Schneider cautioned that O’Rourke’s liberal leaning could work to his detriment in November’s midterms.
“That’s the big problem he has. If Texans find out he’s too liberal for them, they might hesitate,” he said.
President Trump has inserted himself into the campaign as Senate Republicans seek to hang onto their thin majority, announcing last week that that he will hold a “major rally” next month for Cruz.
— Julia Manchester
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