What Went Down At Biden’s State Of The Union And Texas’s Primary Election

We forgot to mention this earlier, but incumbent Dan Patrick easily won the Republican nomination for Texas lieutenant governor with 75 percent of precincts reporting, per the New York Times.

Nathaniel, that’s a great question (classic way to gain time during a live interview to figure out your answer). Cuellar won about 58 percent in a district that Biden won 52 percent in back in 2020, so there’s evidence he’s got decently strong local appeal. But the scandal may have eliminated that potential advantage, along with some shifts in the makeup of the district (62 percent of Cuellar’s old seat is in the new 28th District). So I’m tempted to say it won’t matter much in the end.

That’s a great question, Nathaniel … but it’s honestly hard to tell? Cuellar so far has campaigned as a moderate with more experience, but Cisneros has the backing of congressional progressives, like New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders. If Cisneros sticks to focusing her campaign on local issues impacting the district versus national ones that typically animate the progressive base (but not necessarily Hispanic voters), she could stand a chance of winning in November?