| | '''Robert Francis O'Rourke,''' known as '''Beto O'Rourke''' and formerly as '''Rob O'Rourke''' (born September 26, 1972), served from 2013 to 2019 as the [[U.S. Representative]] for [[Texas]]'s 16th congressional district, based in his native [[El Paso]]. He was the [[liberal]] [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] nominee for the [[United States Senate]] in 2018. Having waged a vigorous campaign with huge funding assets, he came within 220,000 votes of unseating the incumbent [[Republican Party|Republican]] [[Ted Cruz]] in the November 6 [[general election]]. Cruz finished with 4,240,942 votes (50.9 percent) to O'Rourke's 4,017,851 (48.3 percent).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://enrpages.sos.state.tx.us/public/nov06_331_state.htm?x=0&y=0&id=545|title=Election Returns|date=November 6, 2018|publisher=Texas Secretary of State|accessdate=}}</ref> | | '''Robert Francis O'Rourke,''' known as '''Beto O'Rourke''' and formerly as '''Rob O'Rourke''' (born September 26, 1972), served from 2013 to 2019 as the [[U.S. Representative]] for [[Texas]]'s 16th congressional district, based in his native [[El Paso]]. He was the [[liberal]] [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] nominee for the [[United States Senate]] in 2018. Having waged a vigorous campaign with huge funding assets, he came within 220,000 votes of unseating the incumbent [[Republican Party|Republican]] [[Ted Cruz]] in the November 6 [[general election]]. Cruz finished with 4,240,942 votes (50.9 percent) to O'Rourke's 4,017,851 (48.3 percent).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://enrpages.sos.state.tx.us/public/nov06_331_state.htm?x=0&y=0&id=545|title=Election Returns|date=November 6, 2018|publisher=Texas Secretary of State|accessdate=}}</ref> |
| − | Beto, who supports the [[Green New Deal]], accepted $476,325 from the oil and gas industry after taking a "No Fossil Fuel Money" pledge,<ref>https://freebeacon.com/politics/executive-producer-of-new-beto-doc-carbon-based-fuels-rule-the-world-thats-not-going-to-change/</ref> making him the second-biggest recipient of fossil fuel money in Congress.<ref>https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/recips.php?ind=E01++</ref> O'Rouke's [[white privilege]] has propelled him into the top ranks of [[2020 presidential election|2020 Democratic presidential contenders]]. | + | Beto, who supports the [[Green New Deal]], accepted $476,325 from the oil and gas industry after taking the "No Fossil Fuel Money" pledge,<ref>https://freebeacon.com/politics/executive-producer-of-new-beto-doc-carbon-based-fuels-rule-the-world-thats-not-going-to-change/</ref> making him the second-biggest recipient of fossil fuel money in Congress.<ref>https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/recips.php?ind=E01++</ref> O'Rourke's [[white privilege]] has propelled him into the top ranks of [[2020 presidential election|2020 Democratic presidential contenders]]. |
| | O'Rourke was elected to the first of his three terms in Congress in November 2012. Earlier in the year he had unseated the incumbent Representative Silvestre Reyes, a fellow Democrat. Before his congressional years, the [[business]]man O'Rourke represented District 8 on the El Paso City Council. | | O'Rourke was elected to the first of his three terms in Congress in November 2012. Earlier in the year he had unseated the incumbent Representative Silvestre Reyes, a fellow Democrat. Before his congressional years, the [[business]]man O'Rourke represented District 8 on the El Paso City Council. |