Texas' incumbent Republican Gov. Greg Abbott could be facing his closest Democratic challenger ever, former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, the one-time Democratic star who is risking his second straight election statewide loss in Texas.  Early voting ended Friday, with almost 4.8 million Texans voting before Election Day, far fewer than the nearly 9 million who voted early in 2020, a presidential election year. Former President Donald Trump, who won the state twice, visited South Texas to help drive up voter participation and campaign for Republicans. He also hit the deep-red 27th Congressional District, although his rally was in Nueces County, which he won twice, but O'Rourke carried it in 2018. Abbott skipped the rally, but Trump lavished praise on him anyway, calling him a "wonderful man" and saying O'Rourke wanted to "abolish guns, God and oil."  Abbott is seeking a third term, while O'Rourke, his Democratic challenger,is hoping to become the first Democrat to be elected statewide in Texas si