Former Democratic Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke made it clear Thursday that he has no plans to exit the political arena after dropping out of the 2020 presidential race.
O’Rourke said that while some part of him wanted “to go deep into a cave and never come out again,” following his failed presidential campaign, he still plans to be involved in supporting Democratic candidates up and down the ballot throughout the next election cycle. (RELATED: Beto O’Rourke Drops Out Of Presidential Race)
“This country is counting on all of us, and if any one of us fails to do our part to the best of our ability, then we will fail this country and the generations that follow that are counting on us,” O’Rourke said, according to The Hill.
Beared @BetoORourke tells supporters on conference call that while after this kind of experience, “some part of you wants to go deep into a cave and never come out again .., I don’t think you get that pass in a democracy. We are all in to do our part, as I know each of you are.” pic.twitter.com/jWqBZEatpH
— jonathantilove (@JTiloveTX) November 8, 2019
“I’m going to do everything that I can, and what form that takes and in what capacity I don’t know,” O’Rourke continued. “But certainly it will involve supporting great candidates all over this country from school board trustee to the next nominee for the presidency of the Democratic Party.”
O’Rourke was considered a rising star in the party and a potential presidential front-runner after he nearly upset Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz during the 2018 Texas senate race. (RELATED: Large Group Of Protesters Harass Ted Cruz At LAX)
However, O’Rourke’s poll numbers quickly collapsed after he entered the race last Spring. O’Rourke made waves near the end of his run by running to the far-left on cultural issues, proposing gun confiscation and taxing churches that oppose same-sex marriage. However, O’Rourke’s campaign was not able to recover, and the Texas Democrat officially ended his campaign last week.