If the current U.S. congresswoman throws her name in the race, she will likely face a tough general election as a Democrat has not won a U.S. Senate seat in Texas since 1993.
U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, is getting closer to deciding on whether or not she will leave her current office and seek the Lone Star State’s Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in next year’s midterm elections.
Crockett, who announced in October she was considering the Senate run amid the legal battle over Texas’ redrawn map, told MS Now’s “The Weekend” that she is leaning toward a yes more than a no after reviewing polling data showing her beating out the current crop of Democratic candidates.
According to a poll conducted by the University of Houston and Texas Southern University, 31% of Texas Democrats prefer Crockett over current and potential candidates James Talarico (25%), Beto O’Rourke (25%) and Colin Allred (13%).
“I am very formidable,” Crockett said of her chance as a candidate in the race. The Democrat said her campaign evaluation found that she is favored among Black and Brown voters, key demographics for the party, particularly in the South. “The numbers are the numbers,” she said.
Crockett, who represents Texas’ 30th Congressional District, noted that Black and Latino voters made the difference for Democrats in this past November’s elections in New Jersey and Virginia, where Republicans saw devastating losses by significant margins.
When asked to clarify her pending decision, Crockett said, “I am closer to yes than I am no.”
She added, “Regardless of what people think, strategy matters and execution matters. And there are a lot of people that don’t believe in Texas. And so for me, if I am going to tell people that they need to believe in Texas, I need to not only have numbers on a piece of paper, I need to be able to tell them this is exactly how we’re going to get there.”
If Crockett runs and manages to secure the nomination, she will likely face a tough general election as a Democrat hasn’t won a U.S. Senate seat in Texas since 1993. Crockett would also be taking a huge risk, as she will have to resign from Congress in order to seek the Senate seat.
The U.S. Senate seat is currently held by Republican Sen. John Cornyn, who is being challenged by former Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
“We need to be able to take advantage of the fact that the Republicans are fighting right now, and they may have to go to a runoff,” said Crockett.
However, she said her strategy is to not just evaluate whether she is the right candidate for the job and can win but also to ensure that the entire Democratic ticket in Texas is strong enough to bring out voters.
“Part of that equation, for me, again, comes down to what type of ticket. Instead of relying on one person to kind of carry the load, what type of ticket. So I’ve actually been talking to other candidates, potential candidates as well, trying to recruit them,” she shared.
