THREE STRIKES: Once highly touted Beto O'Rourke loses third election in a row

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The third time was not the charm for Texas Democrat Beto O'Rourke on Tuesday as voters in the state got a front-row seat to see his latest attempt at higher office come crashing down.

O'Rourke, a former congressman, fell short in his race to unseat incumbent Republican Gov. Greg Abbott the Fox News Decision Desk projected, marking his third loss in four years after running for U.S. Senate in Texas in 2018 and president in 2020.

Although O'Rourke was highly touted by Democrats in each of his campaigns, he consistently failed to gain traction with voters following his 2018 run for Senate, and ultimately he became parody-worthy for "Saturday Night Live" over his perennial, lackluster runs for office.

TEXAS REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR GREG ABBOTT DEFEATS BETO O'ROURKE, RE-ELECTED FOR THIRD TERM

FILE - Beto O'Rourke (Reuters/Veronica G. Cardenas)

The hype surrounding O'Rourke began during his failed 2018 Senate campaign, which saw him narrowly lose to Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, in the deep-red state and continued when he decided to throw his hat into the crowded Democratic presidential primaries less than two years later. Some Democrats even hailed him as "the next Bobby Kennedy," but a number of gaffes and awkward campaign moments led to him losing support and dropping out of the race months before any votes were even cast.

His decision to run for governor brought strong negative reaction from conservatives, who mocked him, and even from a local news outlet that called him unpopular and a "polarizing figure."

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"You lost twice. No means no!" one Texas resident told him at a campaign event shortly after his campaign announcement.

But he still earned praise from Democrats across the country, Even so, O'Rourke included in an October SNL spoof titled, "Horror Movie Trailer," in which a "Beto for president 2024" flyer was treated as among the most frightening of sights.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks to the 2022 CPAC crowd in Dallas. (Fox News Photo/Joshua Comins)

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O'Rourke has not yet indicated if he intends to run for office again in the future.

Fox News' Sophia Slacik contributed to this report.