Texas voters got their first and only chance to watch the candidates for Texas governor go head-to-head Friday night as incumbent Republican Greg Abbott and Democrat Beto O鈥橰ourke debate live from the Rio Grande Valley.
The debate at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley was hosted by NEXSTAR media group. It鈥檚 the only debate both camps have agreed to, despite O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 campaign asking for more face-to-face contests in a matchup that鈥檚 garnered the most attention of all the statewide races on the ballot in November.
Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 24 and runs through Friday, Nov. 4. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8.
The gubernatorial debate will be hosted by KXAN news anchor Britt Moreno, and the panel of journalists asking questions include Sally Hernandez of KXAN, Gromer Jeffers of The Dallas Morning News, and Steve Spriester of KSAT San Antonio, KXAN .
Several of Texas鈥� public radio stations will also carry the debate live. You can find your local station .
O鈥橰ourke, a former city council member and congressman from El Paso, is looking to be the first Democrat elected to a statewide office in Texas since the mid-1990s. Gov. Abbott was first elected to the position in 2014 and is seeking his third term. He was previously the state鈥檚 attorney general.
Recent polling indicates O鈥橰ourke is still the underdog. A Quinnipiac University released Wednesday showed that 53% of likely voters plan to cast their ballot for the incumbent while 46% said they support O鈥橰ourke.
Abbott has made border security a main theme of his campaign and has painted O鈥橰ourke as a standard bearer of what Republicans call President Joe Biden鈥檚 鈥渙pen-border鈥� policies. O鈥橰ourke鈥檚 camp has hit Abbott on gun control, an issue which was thrust into the headlines after another mass shooting in Texas 鈥� In May a gunman killed 19 children and two schoolteachers at a Uvalde elementary school. Access to abortion is another key issue that separates the candidates.
Both campaigns have events planned around Friday's debate. O鈥橰ourke will meet families from Uvalde who have been pressuring Abbott to call a special session of the Texas Legislature to address gun reform, specifically raising the age to purchase an assault-style weapon from 18 to 21. That event will be held in Edinburg at 1 pm Friday. Abbott will meet with supporters at a watch party in McAllen immediately after the debate. The next day, he鈥檒l speak at the Texans for Greg Abbott and Texas Victory Weekend breakfast in Harlingen.
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Got a tip? Email Juli谩n Aguilar at jaguilar@kera.org.You can follow Juli谩n on Twitter @nachoaguilar
