The former congressman from El Paso, Texas, gained prominence when he tried and failed to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in 2018. Despite losing the election, O’Rourke performed better than expected and was constantly featured on national news outlets.
O’Rourke was mocked by many on the right when he claimed that he would not maintain his previous campaign policy of mandatory gun confiscation after passionately and vehemently speaking in favor of it.
Abbott holds an 8% lead over O’Rourke in the a recent CBS News YouGov poll, 49% to 41%. Despite holding the advantage, Abbott garnered a 46% approval rating in the poll and a 53% disapproval rate.