State of Texas - October 18, 2026

The race for U.S. Senate remains tight as Ken Paxton and James Talarico make their case to supporters before early voting. We hear from both candidates on the campaign trail and dig deeper into new Texas Politics Project polling that shows where each is drawing support. The program also looks at another close statewide contest, as Greg Abbott and Gina Hinojosa make their case to voters in the governor's race. Texas' new billion-dollar Education Freedom Accounts program is now a central issue in the race for comptroller, the office responsible for administering it. Dylan McKim examines how Republican Don Huffines and Democrat Sarah Eckhardt differ over the program's future, including efforts to expand it and calls for additional auditing and oversight. Republicans redrew Congressional District 34 with the goal of flipping the seat from blue to red, but the result is now one of the closest House races in the country. Brian Svendsen profiles Democratic incumbent Vicente Gonzalez and Republican challenger Eric Flores, examining how redistricting reshaped the district and why the contest could help determine control of Congress. The race for Texas Railroad Commission puts competing approaches to regulation of the state's oil and gas industry before voters. Dylan McKim looks at Republican Bo French and Democrat Jon Rosenthal's priorities for the powerful commission, from industry regulation and abandoned wells to natural gas reliability, while polling shows a tight statewide contest. State of Texas is a statewide, in-depth program focused solely on Texas politics. Produced at KXAN in Austin and airing in 14 markets across the state, the show gives viewers greater perspective on the Texas Legislature, state policy and elections.