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RECAP: Greg Abbott And Wendy Davis Face Off In Valley Debate (Video)

Gabe Hernandez
/
Associated Press/The Monitor
Republican Greg Abbott and Democrat Wendy Davis faced off in their first governor’s debate Friday night in the Rio Grande Valley.";

Republican Greg Abbott and Democrat Wendy Davis debated tonight in Edinburg, near the Texas-Mexico border. KERA aired the debate live. If you missed it, watch it below.

The Texas Tribune offered a preview with a choice tidbit: This was only the second televised debate of Abbott's career. His first was during his 2002 run for attorney general. 

KERA’s Shelley Kofler is in the Valley to cover the debate – she reports immigration continues to be in the spotlight.

Abbott and Davis are scheduled for only one more debate: on Sept. 30 at KERA.

The organizers of the Valley debate provided the following livestream. Note: Due to technical difficulties, the audio isn't available during the first several minutes of the debate. The audio starts working around the 7:00 mark.

The Texas Tribune's Jay Root offers this recap of the Valley debate:

In Debate, Davis Takes Aim At Abbott As He Targets Obama

By Jay Root, Texas Tribune

EDINBURG — Using the first gubernatorial debate to go on the attack Friday night, Wendy Davis slammed Republican Greg Abbott on everything from his position on abortion to his opposition to expanding Medicaid in Texas.

And while Davis sought to go on the offensive, Abbott generally let the punches fly without hitting back, portraying himself —as he has since launching his candidacy last year — as a warrior against President Obama and an expansive federal government. 

Abbott did seem to catch Davis off guard when he was given the opportunity to pose a direct question to her. He asked her if she regretted voting for Obama.

“Mr. Abbott, what I am working on right now is running for governor of this incredible state and bringing polices forward that benefit this state,” she said. She then pivoted toward a discussion about her up-from-the-bootstraps biography and said she would work for all Texans if elected governor.

There appeared to be no major gaffes or surprising revelations during the one-hour encounter, but there were several good one-liners and plenty of hot exchanges — at least emanating from Davis’ side of the room.

Read the rest of the story at the Texas Tribune's website.

Eric Aasen is KERA’s managing editor. He helps lead the station's news department, including radio and digital reporters, producers and newscasters. He also oversees keranews.org, the station’s news website, and manages the station's digital news projects. He reports and writes stories for the website and contributes pieces to KERA radio. He's discussed breaking news live on various public radio programs, including The Takeaway, Here & Now and Texas Standard, as well as radio and TV programs in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.