- Title: U.S. Senator Ted Cruz fends off challenge by Democrat O'Rourke
- Date: 7th November 2018
- Summary: ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNITED STATES SENATOR TED CRUZ SAYING: "We love you. Thank you for every hour every word every step every bit of passion. God bless you." CRUZ HUGGING WIFE SHAKING HANDS AND WAVING TO SUPPORTERS
- Embargoed: 21st November 2018 04:45
- Keywords: midterms Republicans senate Beto winner tweet POTUS Trump
- Location: HOUSTON, TEXAS, UNITED STATES / INTERNET
- City: HOUSTON, TEXAS, UNITED STATES / INTERNET
- Country: USA
- Topics: Government/Politics,Elections/Voting
- Reuters ID: LVA00295I9NBB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Democratic U.S. Representative Beto O'Rourke failed on Tuesday (November 6) in his long-shot attempt to oust Republican U.S. Senator Ted Cruz from his seat in deeply conservative Texas.
Cruz, 47, who was first elected to the Senate in 2010 on a wave of fury in the conservative Tea Party movement over Democratic then-President Barack Obama successfully rallied Republican voters to offset this year's Democratic anger over President Donald Trump.
The result helped end Democrats' hopes of taking control of the Senate. But Democrats took over the U.S. House of Representatives, according to media projections, setting the stage for a divided Congress.
O'Rourke, a 46-year-old former punk rocker and three-term U.S. congressman captured the national spotlight and smashed an 18-year-old fundraising record - raising $61.8 million during his campaign, almost twice his rival's $35.1 million.
He fell short by several percentage points on Tuesday, after significantly trailing Cruz in opinion polls for most of the year.
Texas has not sent a Democrat to the Senate in three decades. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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