The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - August 5, 2026

Starting point is 00:00:04 Well, howdy folks? Today is Wednesday, August 5th, and you're listening to The Texans' Daily Rundown. I'm the Texan Senior Editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, a range of Republicans rallied in North Texas on Tuesday night to kick off Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's Protecting the Texas Promise Tour. The Republican nominee for U.S. Senate packed a crowd of attendees and some unlikely allies into a Allen Restaurant for a campaign event that introduced Paxton's economic agenda and urged attendees to mobilize. The rally followed a recent poll that projected a two-point lead for the Democratic nominee, state representative James Talarico, among likely voters in the U.S. Senate race. Introduced by conservative pundit Sarah Gonzalez, Paxton's boosters included fellow North Texas

Starting point is 00:00:58 Republicans in state representatives Shelley Luther, Matt Shaheen, and Jeff Leach, as well as as state senator Bob Hall. Paxton presented a four-point plan focused on lowering the cost of living primarily through tax deductions. His agenda includes a $25,000 deduction for out-of-pocket medical expenses, a $50,000 deduction for first-time homebuyers, a $5,000 deduction for certain health-related purchases, and a doubling of the current child tax credit. Next, incumbent Governor Greg Abbott faces outgoing state representative Gina Hinojosa in the general election for governor this November, and he leads her by varying margins in the most recent polls. The gap ranges from a seven-point advantage in a New York Times Sienna survey conducted in June to a one-point advantage in a Fox News survey conducted in July. The most

Starting point is 00:01:52 recent survey puts Abbott six points ahead. Economic issues have taken center stage in the race, with both candidates vying to outdo the other on the issue of affordability. Hinojosa has pledged a back legislation that would send each Texas household $1,500 if she's elected, and Abbott has rolled out a suite of proposals to lower the cost of living, including price caps for certain medicines and legislation to lower the cost of insurance. Visit the Texan.com news to see where Abbott and Hinahosa stand in the most recent major polls. In other news, the Tarrant County Commissioner's Court unanimously agreed on Tuesday, August 4th, to delay a decision. on how many polling locations to use for the November 3rd midterm election, directing elections administrator Clint Ludwig to return in September with a revised recommendation.

Starting point is 00:02:44 Ludwig had proposed 176 polling locations, down from the 316 used during the 2022 midterm election. County Judge Tim O'Hare said the recommendation was too low. Ludwig based his recommendation on projected turnout, estimating a 40% increase over the 2022 midterms. The increased projection was based on the high turnout during the March 26 primaries. His calculations indicated that 136 polling places would accommodate that turnout, but state law required at least 170. Dozens of speakers, including state lawmakers and political candidates, urged commissioners to reject the proposal, arguing it would reduce voter access, especially among minorities. State Representative Vicki Goodwin, the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant

Starting point is 00:03:32 governor and state senator Nathan Johnson, the Democratic nominee for Attorney General, both spoke against the proposal. Last but not least, with less than the three months to go before early voting begins in the 26 midterm elections, the Texas House Elections Committee took testimony this week regarding ongoing issues with the state's voter database, identification of non-citizens, and county struggles to comply with 2025 election reform legislation. The two-day hearing kicked off Monday with an update from Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Director Christina Atkins on the status of the Texas Election Administration Management or Team System, the state's official statewide voter registration database. Adkins said, quote, this has been a challenging year with

Starting point is 00:04:20 respect to team because we did roll out a new system. Adkins explained that all 254 counties use team, but some interact directly while 24 larger counties use third-party vendors to interface with the database. The database had to be revised to accommodate mid-decade redistricting. Some counties, such as Harris County, were unable to update maps and precincts until after a special election runoff for Congressional District 18 in January. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit the texan.news to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - August 5, 2026

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