What’s next for Texas’ Beto O’Rourke? A teaching gig

Texans have speculated about Beto O’Rourke’s future since he lost the governor’s race in November. Now we have an idea.

O’Rourke is heading to the University of Chicago, where he will teach college students about democracy.

The El Paso Democrat will explore the present and future of U.S. democracy using Texas as a case study, according to the university’s Institute of Politics.

This is not O’Rourke’s first foray into academia. In 2021, he taught a class on Texas politics at Texas State University in San Marcos.

O’Rourke is among eight newly named Pritzker fellows, including Ohio Democrat Tim Ryan, who ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate last year, and former U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer, R-Mich.

Fellows are invited to the university each quarter “for deep dives into the most pressing issues of the day,” the institute’s website says.

O’Rourke has served as a U.S. representative and on the El Paso City Council. He is the author of We’ve Got to Try: How the Fight for Voting Rights Makes Everything Else Possible.

Following his loss to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott last fall, O’Rourke said he would not stop championing issues like gun reform.

“I don’t know what my role or yours will be going forward,” he said, “but I’m in this fight for life.”