Beto O'Rourke says he'll run for Senate if Texans want him to

Former Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) said he would run for Senate again in Texas, this time for Republican Sen. John Cornyn's seat, if Lone Star State voters wanted him to.

“If it comes to pass that this is what the people of Texas want, that it’s the highest and best use of what I can give to you, then yes I will,” O’Rourke said Saturday at a town hall in Denton, Texas.

O’Rourke ran for the Senate against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in 2018, eventually losing by less than 3 points in the historically red state. He also made an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in the 2020 election.

In the most recent U.S. Senate race in Texas, Cruz beat former Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas), this time by more than 8 points.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) announced a high-profile primary bid against Cornyn earlier this month.

"It's definitely time for a change in Texas," Paxton said during his announcement on Fox News.

“We have another great U.S. senator, Ted Cruz, and it’s time we have another great senator that will actually stand up and fight for Republican values, fight for the values of the people of Texas, and also support Trump, Donald Trump, in the areas that he’s focused on in a very significant way. And that’s what I plan on doing,” he added.

A Cornyn campaign spokesperson called Paxton a "fraud" after he entered the race.

“Democrats are trying to destroy President Trump, and he and Texas need a battle-tested conservative who knows how to protect his agenda in the Senate and won’t be outsmarted by Chuck Schumer,” the spokesperson told The Hill at the time, referring to the Senate Democratic leader.