It’s now 8 p.m. ET and polls are closing in most of Texas
It’s now 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. local time) and most polls across Texas are starting set up to shut.
The majority of Texas is on Central Time, nonetheless the western tip of the affirm round El Paso is on Mountain Time.
Polls statewide will be closing at 9 p.m. ET (8 p.m. local time)
This day’s main races location the scene for plenty of key races up and down the Texas ballotthis 365 days, including the Lone Star Divulge’s gubernatorial and attorney overall elections.
Tuesday’s main become also the first election to be held beneath Texas’ unique elections guidelines, which made vital changes to voting procedures within the affirm.
The guidelines restricted early voting hours, eliminated force-through voting and added unique ID requirements for mail voting, among other changes.
These are essentially the main races we are tracking tonight:
- Governor: At the head of the mark, seven Republican challengers are having a knowing to oust incumbent Gov. Greg Abbott, who’s vying for a third-term as Texas’ top executive. Buoyed by establish recognition and the backing of ragged President Trump, Abbott has spent most of his main advertising and marketing campaign interested by Beto O’Rourke, the ragged Democratic Condominium member — and Senate and presidential candidate — who is favored to purchase the Democratic nomination.
- Attorney overall: The urge for attorney overall comes as incumbent Ken Paxton, who is being challenged by three other conservative candidates, Obtain. Louie Gohmert, George P. Bush, the unique Texas Land Commissioner moreover to ragged President George W. Bush’s nephew and ragged Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s son, and Eva Guzman, the ragged affirm Supreme Court docket justice and most sensible lady running on the Republican aspect.
- 28th congressional district: Down in South Texas, Obtain. Henry Cuellar, belief to be a political institution in Laredo, is facing off in a rematch against 28-365 days-used modern immigration attorney Jessica Cisneros.
CNN will visual show unit urge outcomes as they approach in.
CNN’s Rachel Janfaza, Ethan Cohen and Melissa DePalo contributed reporting to this post.
Right here’s what Texan voters and election officials are saying about how the foremost is unfolding on the ground
From CNN’s Kelly Mena and Fredreka Schouten
The midterm election season kicked off Tuesday in Texas — with election workers, voters and voting rights activists reporting plenty of system faults, including ballotworker shortages, as Texans cast their ballots in person.
Nonetheless election officials within the Lone Star Divulge say the largest disaster soundless looms: The bound to repair the upper-than-usual different of mail-in ballots flagged for ability rejection beneath the affirm’s restrictive unique voting guidelines.
Officials in Harris County — home to Houston — had flagged as nefarious almost 30% of the larger than 38,000 mail-in ballots purchased as of Monday on legend of voters did no longer contain figuring out info on the return envelope, the county’s election chief Isabel Longoria educated newshounds Tuesday morning.
Meaning voters seemingly will cast more provisional ballots than typical on Election Day, she added.
Tuesday marks the first primaries of 365 days. In Texas, the outcomes will resolve overall election matchups for governor and a slew of statewide and legislative places of work. If no candidate achieves bigger than 50% reinforce, a runoff election is slated for May per chance well also.
Tuesday also marks the first test of a brand unique voting guidelines passed by the Republican-controlled legislature final 365 days. The guidelines imposes unique ID requirements to vote by mail, empowers partisan ballotwatchers and bans practices extinct by Harris County in 2020, comparable to 24-hour and force-through voting.
Texans who qualify to vote by mail felt the first consequences of the unique guidelines. It requires them to contain identification numbers each when applying for a mail-in ballotand again on the within flap of the envelope they use to return the ballot — a direction of that tripped up many in fresh weeks.
Those issues surfaced again at polling places on Tuesday.
Joseph Egbon acknowledged he voted in person Tuesday on legend of election officials rejected his mail-in ballota few days within the past.
“It become upright final week they despatched me the letter,” Egbon educated CNN. “I did no longer wish to argue so I acknowledged, ‘Let me upright hasten ahead'” and vote in person.
Egbon acknowledged it become pretty straightforward to rep so. It took upright 15 minutes him to vote at the Bayland Park Community Heart in southwestern Houston.
Most advantageous a subset of Texas voters are eligible to cast ballots by mail. They contain those 65 and older, of us that will be out of the county and voters who’re disabled or unwell.
Read the elephantine chronicle right here.
Trump made inroads with Latino voters in South Texas. Now Democrats are having a knowing to purchase them abet.
From CNN’s Maeve Reston and Nicole Chavez
As clients browsed the market stalls at the Pulga Los Portales within the Rio Grande Valley, Armando Acosta and Albino Zuniga caught up over breakfast earlier than opening their lotería stand, the set up clients most incessantly quit to play the mature Mexican bingo-style sport.
Over the final two years, these two pals occupy bonded through the twists and turns of the Covid-19 pandemic. Nonetheless they diverge sharply over politics in this closely Latino location of Texas, which had been viewed as a Democratic stronghold — except 2020.
Former President Donald Trump dramatically improved his efficiency in a lot of the counties bordering Mexico when compared with four years earlier — positive aspects that led the GOP this 365 days to redouble efforts to recruit and invest in South Texas candidates, including many of Hispanic descent, up and down the ballot. The attach a query to of now is whether or no longer the inroads the GOP made in 2020 will preserve as Democrats strive to hang to their Condominium majority in November.
Tuesday’s primaries within the Lone Star Divulge — the first congressional primaries of 2022 — are an early test for the 2 events as they strive to flip out voters like Acosta, 40, and Zuniga, 56, with preserve watch over of Congress within the kill hinging on narrowly divided districts like this one.
CNN spoke to plenty of dozen Latino voters across the location, including right here within the newly redrawn 15th District, an originate seat that runs from the populous border areas approach McAllen north to cities east of San Antonio. They raised an array of the clarification why Trump resonated right here more in 2020 than in 2016 — specifically his relentless focal level on getting the financial system reopened after Covid shutdowns — moreover to components Democrats can occupy to deal with to purchase a few of them abet in 2022.
Though many of his members of the family are Democrats, Zuniga backed Trump within the final presidential election, saying the then-President’s message on immigration resonated for him as a reliable immigrant from Mexico and the daddy of a Border Patrol agent. Trump’s message about getting folks abet to work mid-pandemic also connected with the ethos of powerful work and self-reliance Zuniga says is inherent in Hispanic custom along the border.
He become repelled, Zuniga acknowledged, by what he sees because the liberal hasten along with the drift of the Democratic Event. Those emotions most sensible deepened as he watched President Joe Biden and the Democrat-controlled Congress hand out more Covid-linked advantages to distinct folks that he believes had been too excellent.
Though earlier Covid reduction capabilities were passed beneath Trump with Republican reinforce, that become a frequent criticism of Biden that CNN heard right here from each Democratic and GOP voters voicing issues about the financial system and inflation.
Nonetheless Acosta hopes Latino voters will reward Democrats in November for financial reduction passed by Congress beneath Biden, arguing that Republicans most incessantly peek after the neatly off as a replacement of those in want. He is supporting the congressional candidacy of modern Democrat Michelle Vallejo, who co-owns Pulga Los Portales with her family and has championed a $15 minimum wage and Medicare for All.
“The Rio Grande Valley is split on legend of there would possibly perhaps be a necessity for so many things like higher salaries and infrastructure,” Acosta acknowledged. “Democrats are mostly interested by serving to the folks and if they support folks, we need to in any admire times soundless reinforce them.”
Read the elephantine chronicle right here.
The Texas main sheds light on early checks for 2022
From CNN’s Gregory Krieg and Maeve Reston
The first primaries of the 2022 midterms is unfolding in Texas, headlined by a feisty Republican bound in the attorney overall’s urge, are poised to reverberate through each events and location the landscape for elections in November that can also swing preserve watch over of Congress to Republicans.
Nonetheless even because the outcomes open up to filter in, Texas will half the spotlight with President Biden’s Divulge of the Union tackle on Capitol Hill and the snappy escalating crisis in Ukraine, the set up invading forces from Russia are transferring in on main cities across the country.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s troops were camped out on the Ukrainian border when early voting began in Texas on Feb. 14, and whereas the struggle looks unlikely to electrify Tuesday night time’s elections, instant-transferring events at home and in a foreign country underscore the challenges facing candidates because the 2022 midterms open up in earnest.
The banner contest on Tuesday revolves round Texas Attorney Frequent Ken Paxton. The two-term incumbent, who filed a failed lawsuit looking out for to effectively overturn the 2020 election, is running beneath a cloud of reliable issues, with the likelihood of more on the horizon, that his GOP challengers occupy argued can also endanger the GOP’s effort to once more sweep statewide places of work.
Most neatly-liked polling reveals Paxton with a commanding lead within the four-draw main, nonetheless he’s at likelihood of topple in want of the majority wanted to clinch the nomination, which can perhaps well send the urge to a runoff. The larger attach a query to of now: If Paxton falls in want of the sting, which of his opponents — all abundant candidates with gigantic followings and tense resources — will attain to a ability one-on-one contest in leisurely May per chance well also?
The slim favorite to location a spring date with Paxton is Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush, the latest in a political dynasty that, even with the Republican Event now in thrall to ragged President Trump, maintains a powerful stature in Texas political circles.
Like Bush, ragged Texas Supreme Court docket Justice Eva Guzman, who spent bigger than a decade on the affirm’s excessive court docket, is a relative moderate. The pair clashed in a fresh debate, which seen Guzman attach a query to of Bush’s qualifications and Bush denounce Guzman as a “gutter flesh presser.” Of more disaster to Paxton, no lower than as this first main round shakes out, is the candidacy of US Obtain. Louie Gohmert, whose ideological and geographic unfriendly overlaps with Paxton’s.
The primaries for governor figure to rep much less drama. Two-term incumbent Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is neatly-positioned to envision off a crowded field of GOP challengers and Democrat Beto O’Rourke, a ragged congressman and Senate and presidential candidate, is the overwhelming favorite to purchase the Democratic nomination.
Inserting over it all, even supposing, are issues — no lower than among Democrats and voting rights advocates — about the attain of the affirm’s restrictive unique voting suggestions.
Texas would possibly perhaps be the first of a different of Republican-led states to preserve main elections after passing guidelines, on the abet of a political wave location off off by Trump’s long advertising and marketing campaign to sow doubt over his loss in 2020, that complicates mail-in voting and outlaws other efforts to salvage the ballotmore accessible. Some increased Texas counties occupy already reported spikes in ballotrejections on legend of would-be voters did no longer meet beefed-up and, to many, confusing unique identification requirements.
Read the elephantine chronicle right here.
Voter voices: Right here’s why one eligible Texas voter didn’t bother going to the polls in at the present time’s main
From CNN’s Maeve Reston
When 63-365 days-used ancient Robert Lopez encountered Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke no longer too long within the past because the candidate become door-knocking in Lopez’s region of birth of Brownsville, he had upright one attach a query to of: what precisely is the Democratic Event’s belief for coping with illegal immigration?
It’s been a central disaster for Lopez residing in a border town and he isn’t certain Democrats are taking it severely, which frustrates him as he watches the debate rage between the events without either aspect ever selecting an answer. “The Democrats don’t support. The Republicans don’t support,” he acknowledged.
Of their trade, O’Rourke had wired his gaze that leaders need to soundless defer to local communities about what measures they wish to derive to enhance border security. (“I belief the folks of Laredo, bigger than any individual else to resolve what’s in their most sensible pastime security, financial and otherwise,” O’Rourke educated Lopez, citing the instance of how many in Laredo had voiced their opposition to the border wall final 365 days).
Nonetheless Lopez is soundless no longer happy with answers from either aspect. He says he has struggled to realize whether Democrats occupy a message on border security. He gives Trump credit for drawing consideration to the disaster in a mode Democrats haven’t — noting that he preferred how Trump become vocal in his reinforce for guidelines enforcement officers and border patrol brokers. His assertiveness on those issues become undoubtedly a number of the things that Hispanic voters in South Texasliked about the ragged President, he added.
“‘Trump acknowledged, howdy, we’re no longer taking this bull. Conclude this, and boost. If now we occupy to create a fence, we’ll create a fence.’” (Though Lopez doesn’t say the border wall portions to an answer).
Trump had “balls,” Lopez provides, whereas he thinks the jury is soundless out on President Biden, whose approval rankings occupy slid among independents in Texas.
By border security: “We’re in limbo,” Lopez acknowledged in an interview after talking to O’Rourke.
He didn’t salvage it to the polls in 2020, despite the truth that he acknowledged he become “cheering” for Trump from the sidelines. And even after whereas no longer too long within the past using his pal, James Roussett, to the polls to cast a Democratic ballotin the Texas main, Lopez didn’t feel prefer it become price it to cast one himself.
When asked what it would possibly perhaps well well derive to salvage him out to the polls in November, he acknowledged he soundless expecting a candidate who convinces him that his vote would topic: “You’d occupy to bid (that) to me some draw, by hook or by crook,” he acknowledged. “Persons are getting tired right here of the corruption.”
What Texans are saying about Biden’s efficiency earlier than his Divulge of the Union tackle
From CNN’s Maeve Reston
With the Texas midterm main unfolding on the identical day as President Biden’s “Divulge of the Union” tackle, we had of project to register with Texans about the Democratic President’s efficiency to date. Reviews were blended and typically sour, which tracks with Biden’s slipping approval rating in Texas and nationally.
One surprisingly overall gaze among each Republicans and Democrats in South Texas is that the Biden administration and Democratic-controlled Congress gave out too grand for Covid-19, which they maintain about is slowing the industrial restoration and the pinch they’re feeling from inflation (That’s a scorching topic of debate nationally and it’s price noting that grand of the Covid-linked reduction originated beneath ragged President Donald Trump and become supported by the GOP).
Assorted Texans felt Biden is unfairly being blamed for things previous his preserve watch over, like Jaqueline Martinez, a 29-365 days-used mother of a newborn and a 4-365 days-used son from Palmview, Texas. Aloof, she acknowledged her family has struggled to pay utility and land funds on time and occupy postponed renovating their RV, on legend of it has been so advanced to build.
“Or no longer it’s been hitting us wonderful powerful,” acknowledged Martinez. “Every week now my husband is like ‘I occupy to add more gas (money) again’…. In region of the usual $25, now it needs to be $33, $35 within our family’s budget.”
She added that whereas “inflation is no longer technically (Biden’s) fault…. Everybody’s been blaming the President for the inflation and all these rising costs. I’m hoping (the Democrats) rep lawful (in November). I’m hoping they rep higher, nonetheless I don’t know. It feels roughly tough lawful now,” she acknowledged.
Attributable to the entire financial struggles, she says that South Texas – the set up Trump and Republicans did higher than anticipated in 2020 – now appears like “a battleground” the set up “you would possibly perhaps well presumably also feel the competition.”
Her luxuriate in disappointments with Biden and his administration stem from her region as “a dreamer” who benefited from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which has faced ongoing litigation and an effort to finish it by Trump that become blocked by the Supreme Court docket. After a federal resolve ruled in July that the program become illegal, Martinez and a complete bunch of hundreds of others had been in reliable limbo, and she wants to envision Biden “fight more challenging” for a permanent solution.
“I had a lot of setbacks and I soundless occupy a lot of setbacks,” acknowledged Martinez, who infamous that her unsure region keeps her from working originate air the home. She says she wants “the promises made to be saved, to in truth be attach into plans.”
She acknowledged that the Biden administration has proposed a different of alternatives for DACA recipients, nonetheless occupy no longer but prevailed to find a permanent repair: “You don’t stop, you would possibly perhaps well presumably even occupy to preserve combating,” she acknowledged. “So I’d indicate for them to preserve combating…. In the occasion that they truly want it.”
This day’s Texas primaries will be essentially the most intense competition for seats within the US Condominium
From CNN’s Eric Bradner and Gregory Krieg
When Texas lawmakers redrew the affirm’s congressional districts final 365 days, they effectively become swing districts exact into a thing of the previous. Battlegrounds were become into neatly-behaved seats, some for Republicans and a few for Democrats.
That is made the primaries essentially the most intense competition for seats within the US Condominium.
Republicans Reps. Dan Crenshaw, of Texas’ 2nd District, and Van Taylor, of the third District, face challengers who argue they’re insufficiently conservative and haven’t been supportive enough of Trump.
In the eighth District, the set up GOP Obtain. Kevin Brady is retiring, establishment favorite Morgan Luttrell, a ragged Navy SEAL backed by Condominium Minority Chief Kevin McCarthy and the Congressional Management Fund excellent PAC, faces some distance-lawful opponent Christian Collins, who’s been supported by Georgia Obtain. Marjorie Taylor Greene and North Carolina Obtain. Madison Cawthorn.
In two originate-seat races that desire Democrats, two leading contenders — ragged Austin Metropolis Councilman Greg Casar within the 35th District, who, like Cisneros, has been counseled by Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders, and affirm Obtain. Jasmine Crockett within the 30th District — are all nonetheless certain to book the pack, nonetheless essentially the main attach a query to of is whether or no longer they can contaminated the 50% threshold to preserve some distance off from a runoff.
Listed below are few things to gaze in at the present time’s Texas primaries
From CNN’s Eric Bradner and Gregory Krieg
Texas kicks off the 2022 midterm elections at the present time with the nation’s first primaries.
Two sizable-establish Republicans, Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney Frequent Ken Paxton, will look to ward off challenges from the lawful. In South Texas, essentially the most conservative Democrat within the US Condominium, Obtain. Henry Cuellar, is making an are trying to outlive a rematch against Jessica Cisneros, the modern who almost ousted him within the foremost two years within the past.
The contests would possibly perhaps be the first test of how the restrictive unique voting guidelines enacted by Texas Republicans final 365 days will reshape the voters.
One necessary wrinkle in Texas: To purchase the foremost, candidates rep no longer upright occupy to beat their competitors nonetheless need to purchase bigger than 50% of the vote. In any other case, the head two finishers attain to a head-to-head runoff election on May per chance well also 24. That threshold can also play a truly powerful position in plenty of Condominium primaries.
Listed below are a few things to gaze at the present time:
- First test of restrictive voting guidelines: Texas is a number of the many slew of Republican-dominated states that, amid ragged President Trump’s lies about neatly-liked voter fraud, enacted a brand unique guidelines that makes voting by mail more advanced and outlaws some alternatives — comparable to force-through and 24-hour early voting — that excellent Texas counties had extinct in 2020. This day’s main would possibly perhaps be the first election to happen beneath the restrictive unique guidelines. And operatives and activists across the nation will be watching closely to envision how the guidelines impacts main turnout.
- Can progressives replace the story in South Texas? Jessica Cisneros, a 28-365 days-used immigration attorney, came within a few facets of ousting Democratic Obtain. Henry Cuellar in their 2020 main. Now, with Cuellar beneath investigation by the FBI, modern groups like Justice Democrats, which recruited Cisneros to urge, are more and more optimistic about their probabilities to defeat the long-time incumbent and lone final Condominium Democrat to consistently vote against abortion rights funds.
- Massive GOP urge would possibly perhaps well no longer be settled at the present time: Texas Attorney Frequent Ken Paxton, a two-term incumbent, is also forced exact into a GOP main runoff if he would no longer purchase a definite majority tonight. And with fresh polling displaying him falling in want of that threshold, the sizable attach a query to of in this very costly urge is which of the three challengers is in all likelihood to achieve to a ability one-on-one contest.
Read more about at the present time’s primaries right here.
Texas Gov. Abbott is up against a crowded GOP main nonetheless keeps his focal level on Democrat Beto O’Rourke
From CNN’s Rachel Janfaza
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott faces seven Republican opponents in Tuesday’s Republican main as he seeks a third term leading the Lone Star Divulge. Nonetheless he has spent most of his advertising and marketing campaign attacking the seemingly Democratic nominee, Beto O’Rourke.
Left-leaning policy proposals pushed by O’Rourke, a ragged Texas congressman, at some level of his unsuccessful 2020 presidential advertising and marketing campaign occupy change into advertising and marketing campaign fodder for Abbott within the more conservative affirm.
Abbott’s advertising and marketing campaign views the foremost as a “costume rehearsal for the general election,” Dave Carney, overall consultant for Abbott’s reelection group, educated CNN, adding that the level of pastime become on turning out as many electorate as that you simply would possibly perhaps well presumably also factor in “so that we upright occupy a increased unfriendly to plan on for the general.”
“We’re upright running at elephantine throttle to derive a knowing at to jack turnout on March 1. Or no longer it’s moderately straightforward. There’s no trickery or ‘strategery’ or financial institution shots. Or no longer it’s upright straight up flip out the vote,” Carney acknowledged.
Abbott began the advertising and marketing campaign cycle facing intraparty criticism that he wasn’t conservative enough and become too unhurried to totally reopen the affirm after the pandemic first hit. He has since leaned into scorching-button Republican issues over the previous 365 days to counter those assaults.
And, earlier this month, Abbott asked the affirm’s Division of Family and Keeping Products and services to analyze instances of gender-asserting surgical therapies and hormone therapy given to transgender childhood, saying such treatment constituted “child abuse.”
The answer to duvet his lawful flank looks to occupy worked. Abbott secured the endorsement of ragged President Donald Trump final 365 days. And buoyed by excessive establish recognition and a huge advertising and marketing campaign struggle chest, he is neatly positioned to dominate Tuesday’s GOP main and rep the majority vote wanted to preserve some distance off from a runoff.
A University of Texas/Texas Politics Project ballot from final month confirmed him garnering the reinforce of 60% of registered voters who intend to vote within the Republican main. Abbott also led O’Rourke 47% to 37% in a hypothetical November matchup, essentially based thoroughly mostly on the gaze.
Abbott — who purchased his open up in Texas politics as a affirm district resolve earlier than serving on the Texas Supreme Court docket and as affirm attorney overall — launched his advertising and marketing campaign final November with a focal level on border security and police reinforce.
“I want you to know I’m running for reelection to guard and rep our border. I’m running for reelection to enhance our law enforcement officials within the sizable affirm of Texas. And I’m running to make certain Texas stays a job creation machine,” he acknowledged in a video posted to his Twitter at the time.
His advertising and marketing campaign wired that the emphasis on these issues is no longer a brand unique one for Abbott.
“We had been talking about those things for five, four years now,” Carney acknowledged.
O’Rourke, who faces most sensible token opposition within the Democratic main, drew nationwide consideration in 2018 when he held Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz to a slim 3-level purchase. The following 365 days he launched his candidacy for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination nonetheless ended up suspending his advertising and marketing campaign after eight months.
Abbott’s advertising and marketing campaign has accused O’Rourke of flip-flopping and backtracking on feedback he made about the southern border, guns and the Inexperienced Fresh Deal whereas running for president in 2020.
Read the fully chronicle right here.
