FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas — Gov. Greg Abbott and his Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke both made stops in Southeast Texas on Monday.
Abbott was in Beaumont and O’Rourke was in Fort Bend County.
The challenger attacked the incumbent for his actions before and after the power blackout during the February freeze.
“He failed us,” O’Rourke told the crowd at the Fort Bend County Fairgrounds in Rosenberg.
O'Rourke accused Abbott of giving natural gas companies a loophole to avoid weatherization.
“That means we are more likely to have another blackout if we have really extreme weather again this winter,” O’Rourke told reporters after the event. “It’s very clear that he’s looking out for his campaign donors instead of looking out for the people of Texas.”
Abbott did not address the grid during his Beaumont speech on Monday. However, he tweeted Sunday that ERCOT’s inspection of more than 300 gas and power plants will ensure grid resiliency and reliability during the upcoming winter.
During an interview on Dec. 3 with KHOU 11’s sister station in San Antonio, Abbott praised changes made by ERCOT and the Public Utilities Commission.
“They have taken action items, including making sure that they have additional power available to make sure that the ERCOT power system will remain stable and reliable throughout the entire winter,” Abbott told KENS 5.
Bob Stein, KHOU 11’s political analyst, said what happens this winter determines how big of a deal the grid issue remains leading up to November 2022.
“If we get another freeze, if we get another shortage, if people are inconvenienced, then yeah, this becomes a major issue in the campaign,” Stein said.
Stein said higher energy bills will also get voters’ attention.
“Consumers are going to be paying for last year’s mistakes, last year’s losses, and we have to pay to fix the grid this year and next year,” said Ed Hirs, KHOU 11’s energy expert. “So, our bills are absolutely going up.”
It’s the main factor Hirs believes will turn up the political heat on Abbott.