Cruz, O’Rourke coast to victory in Texas primaries

Sen. Ted Cruz (R) and his Democratic challenger, Beto O’Rourke, coasted to primary victories in Texas on Tuesday, setting the pair up for a November showdown.

The Associated Press called the U.S. Senate primary races for Cruz and O’Rourke, respectively, less than an hour after the polls closed. 

As of 10 p.m. Eastern time, and with less than 10 percent of votes tallied, O’Rourke led his nearest challenger by roughly 40 percentage points. 

{mosads}Cruz had an even wider margin, leading his nearest challenger by nearly 80 percentage points with 10 percent of the vote totaled.

O’Rourke, an El Paso resident, raised $2.3 million in the first six weeks of 2018, compared to Cruz’s $800,000 over the same time period.

A January poll from the left-leaning End Citizens United group showed Cruz leading O’Rourke by 8 points — a low margin in a state that has long been a stronghold for the GOP.  

Cruz earlier Tuesday acknowledged the surge of energy among Democrats across the state, saying it’s “absolutely” a cause for concern.

“We could end up with a Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi [D-Calif.] and a [Senate] Majority Leader Chuck Schumer [D-N.Y.]. In Texas, if conservatives stay home, if we rest on our laurels, we could see Texas turn blue,” the senator said.