Texas showdown: Beto O’Rourke to hold 70 campaign events in 49 days as he challenges GOP Gov. Greg Abbott

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Beto O’Rourke next week will launch an ambitious 49-day campaign swing across Texas, as he challenges two-term Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.

The O’Rourke campaign says the trip will start on July 19 in El Paso and hit every region of the state, including some small towns that rarely see major political events. And O’Rourke will make more than a dozen stops in South Texas, a region where Republicans have made gains in recent years with the large population of Spanish-speaking voters.

"We are going to bring people together in every part of this state to overcome Abbott’s extremism, incompetence, cruelty and corruption, and focus on the big things that unite us: great jobs, world-class schools, the ability to see a doctor and lowering costs so every Texan can live to their full potential," O’Rourke charged in a statement.