Early voting begins today in Texas, and Democrats might have a chance to flip Texas in at least one statewide race for the first time in decades. 

The big picture: Polling numbers have shown the U.S. Senate race tightening in Texas, and Democrats have infused cash into the state. 

Context: Sen. Ted Cruz, the Republican former Texas solicitor general, is seeking his third term. He narrowly defeated Democratic challenger Beto O'Rourke in 2018. 

• His race against Democratic congressman Colin Allred of Dallas might be even closer. The former NFL player, now a civil rights attorney, is a fundraising juggernaut. 
• Allred's campaign reported raising $1 million in the hours after the candidates faced off in a fiery debate last week. 

Here's a look at some of their positions: 

Bill writing: Cruz painted Allred as inexperienced and pointed to his own legislative experience, saying he "authored and passed 101 different pieces of legislation." 

• Over his almost 12-year career in the Senate, Cruz has sponsored four and co-sponsored 70 pieces of legislation that passed both chambers, per a KHOU fact check. Over nearly six years, Allred has sponsored one and co-sponsored 51 pieces of legislation that passed.   

Economy: Allred criticized Cruz's opposition to certain economic bills, including an August tax relief bill that would've given families a child tax credit. The measure passed the House but failed in the Senate, where Cruz voted no. 

• Cruz claimed illegal immigration is driving up inflation, but a Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas analysis found that the immigration wave has had little effect on inflation.  

On LGBTQ+ issues, abortion, immigration

Former President Trump has endorsed Cruz in his re-election bid, a move that may comfort some Texas Republicans.

The big picture: Trump-backed candidates in several state and local races won their Republican primaries, even beating long-standing incumbents in some cases. 

• Brandon Gill, son-in-law of Dinesh D'Souza, won the GOP primary to replace U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess, a Denton County Republican who's retiring after 11 terms.
• Former Trump spokesperson Katrina Pierson will be a state legislator after winning in a runoff against incumbent Justin Holland of Rockwall. 

What they're saying: "While I have Endorsed Ted, on numerous occasions, verbally, because of the Importance of the Race, and Ted's Importance to the future of our Country, I thought the Endorsement should be memorialized in writing," Trump wrote on Truth Social last week.

• Trump also reminded Texans that he "won big" in the state in 2016 and 2020. 

The intrigue: Allred pointed to Cruz's affiliation with Trump during their debate last week, calling Cruz "the architect" of the attempt to overthrow the election, leading to the Jan. 6, 2021, riots at the U.S. Capitol. Cruz laughed at Allred's claim. 

• Cruz didn't answer a question during the debate on whether he believed the 2020 election was stolen, a claim that has been widely debunked.  

What happened: Cruz was objecting to the certification of Arizona's 2020 election results when rioters breached the building. 

• At a Senate committee hearing in 2022, Cruz described the insurrection as a "violent terrorist attack." He later walked back that comment on Fox News, saying he was only referring to the people who attacked police officers and not the rest of the mob who objected to the 2020 election results.

Dallas-Fort Worth has about 450,000 more registered voters this election compared with 2020. 

• And about 1 million more than when Trump ran for president in 2016.

The big picture: The region has some of the fastest-growing counties in the nation, with the population booming especially in the suburbs and exurbs. 

• Denton is now the seventh Texas county with a population over 1 million, per U.S. Census Bureau data.

State of play: Voter registration drives appear to have worked. At least 167,000 more North Texans are registered to vote now than were for the March primaries. 

• Since Trump first ran for president in 2016, the four most populous North Texas counties have added more than 815,000 registered voters. 

Zoom out: Some of the outlying counties, including Kaufman and Rockwall counties, have seen huge population growth that is mirrored in their increases in registered voters. 

• Kaufman, the fastest-growing county in the country, added more than 40,000 registered voters since 2016. 

Stunning stat: Tarrant County has added the most registered voters since 2016, with 224,072. 

• That's almost equivalent to the Irving population. 

Reality check: About a quarter of registered voters are unlikely to cast a ballot. 

• For example, about 68% of registered voters in Tarrant County voted in 2020.

💍 Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and his girlfriend, Sarah Jane Ramos, are engaged. They shared photos with their daughter in a cute proposal-themed onesie. (WFAA)

🏀 The Dallas Wings fired head coach Latricia Trammell after the team's lackluster performance last season. (NBC5)

🐅 "Tiger King" Joe Exotic, who is serving a 21-year sentence in Fort Worth for a murder-for-hire plot and federal wildlife violations, was placed in quarantine with a contagious skin condition called scabies. (DMN)

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Patio season is upon us, and we recently tried an Austin restaurant with a large outdoor area and European-style dining where you don't have to rush your meal.

The intrigue: Aba in Austin has been on our bucket list for a while. Our friends often gush about the upscale Mediterranean restaurant's ambiance and food. 

• Aba — "father" in Hebrew — is also in Chicago and Miami.

Pro tip: Reservations book up quickly, so plan in advance.

Where: Aba, 1011 S. Congress Ave., in Austin

What we ordered: Whipped feta and short rib shakshuka.

Cost: $14 for whipped feta, $19 for shakshuka. Extra pita is free.

Six-word review: Texan way to enjoy traditional shakshuka.