Enter Robert Francis O’Rourke, or as he’s popularly known, “Beto.” It wouldn’t be right to call O’Rourke a politician. He’s held office but isn’t really known for anything he’s done while in it. Not for lack of trying to become a politician. O’Rourke tried to run for Senate against Ted Cruz and failed. Then he tried to run for President and failed again.

Now, O’Rourke is try-trying again but never learning from the mistakes that caused his previous losses. As of this writing, O’Rourke is trailing behind Abbott by single digits according to the latest Quinnipiac Poll, but among likely voters, you can probably increase that to a 10-point lead.

To be sure, Abbott’s seven-point lead should be larger and Texas’s voting demographics likely changed over the past decade thanks to the interstate migration of corporations from New York and California to the Lone Star State, but it’s still not enough. Those who kept their politics after moving from blue states are being countered by those who abandoned their blue-state politics after they arrived in Texas and saw what it was to live a life with minimal government involvement.

O’Rourke’s corrupt history aside, one of his biggest problems is his inability to be his own man. The guy is willing to adopt any policy or stance popular with the left at the time. During his presidential election, he proceeded to be an AOC clone, making bold, hard-left declarations about everything from the environment to gun control. He even attempted to do his own Facebook live’s like the New York darling does, but it was nothing short of weird.

As I wrote back in August, everything O’Rourke does is touched by cringe:

This lack of being a person who has any kind of substance leads to some moments of severe cringe. This is the same O’Rourke that compared the people writing climate change proposals to the people who stormed the beaches of Normandy. This is the same O’Rourke who got downvoted in his own AMA on Reddit by the thousands. He shared a video of himself on Instagram getting his teeth worked on by a dentist…and beginning to change a tire…and trying to cook up a burger.

His cringe also gets a bit disgusting. When Gov. Greg Abbott was giving updates to the community after the Uvalde shooting, it was O’Rourke who showed up and tried to make a scene in order to benefit his campaign.

(READ: Beto O’Rourke Continues to Reign as One of the Most Cringy Politicians Today)

The chances of O’Rourke winning against Abbott are infinitesimal. Unless some dark miracle occurs, Abbott will likely see at least one more term while O’Rourke will slink back into the shadows and bide his time until another election comes around for him to try his hand at.

You see, it’s my opinion that O’Rourke’s career isn’t to be a politician, it’s to be a candidate. If he ever wins, it’s all well and good for him. He’ll do whatever the DNC tells him to do, say whatever the talking points of the day are, and he’ll stay there for as long as he’s able. However, O’Rourke’s chances at being elected are slim.

At this point, the only thing going for him is brand recognition. There’s not a lot of substance to the man and we saw what happens to him when there are other Democrats to choose from. His popularity in Texas is kind of like Biden’s popularity in 2020. People support him because they have to. It reminds one a bit of that Bo Burnham song.

O’Rourke is not a politician. He’s not a winner. At best, he’s a sideshow. He’s something that can allow Texas Democrats to do a quick head count to see if they have the power to win anything in Texas yet, then go back waiting for the time when they do. He’s a way to see if the left can’t get some money infused into their coffers before they can’t milk their voters anymore.

O’Rourke is a placeholder for someone more important down the line, and that’s not to say that’s not coming sooner than later, but it’s not O’Rourke.

And it never will be.