MJ Hegar has found an unexpected inspiration in her race to defeat Texas senatorial incumbent John Cornyn.
The Democratic contender says she looks to the success of Senator Ted Cruz to understand what Texans want to see in a candidate.
As POLITICO reports,Hegar, a former helicopter pilot who did three tours in Afghanistan, sees Ted Cruz as someone who's not afraid to stir the pot politically. And she thinks that's why he succeeds in Texas - because, according to Hegar, Texans like to support a maverick.
On the other hand, Hegar says that Cornyn is "always just in kind of coast mode, and self-preservation, and just not leading and taking any risks."
By contrast, she says, “Ted Cruz cut his teeth politically in Texas on disrupting the Republican establishment, and Texans love a fighter."