Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) reflected on the state of Texas’ politics after Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) gave Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) a run for his money in a state once considered a slam-dunk Republican stronghold.

“Texas is no longer, I believe, a reliably red state. We are on the precipice of turning purple, and we’ve got a lot of work to do to keep it red, because we lost, we got blown out in the urban areas,” Cornyn said Tuesday on Hugh Hewitt’s radio show. “We got beat in the suburbs, which used to be our traditional strongholds. And if it wasn’t for the rural areas of the state where Senator Cruz won handily, it might not have turned out the way it did.”

Cornyn is up for reelection in 2020. Some have speculated that rising star O’Rourke may challenge him then, if O’Rourke opts not to run for President.

h/t Political Wire