SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Texas and football - a classic combination no matter who you root for.
(CHEERING)
DETROW: Root for or vote for. Texas has been a safe Republican state for three decades, but polling suggests next month's midterms could be tight. So Houston Public Media's Bianca Seward takes us to the bleachers at Deer Park High School's homecoming game, where fans in this Houston suburb offer a glimpse into the state's changing politics.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Go go go.
(CHEERING)
BIANCA SEWARD, BYLINE: In Texas, the high school football field is sacred ground.
ERIC SCHUTLZ: And it's a culture that, no matter if you're in big city or rural Texas, where I grew up, it's a time for everybody, just the same principle as going to church, right?
SEWARD: That's Eric Schutlz. He and his wife and kids come every Friday night that they can.
SCHUTLZ: It's kind of a function of the community and for families to get together - community - and support everybody - band, football players, cheerleaders.
SEWARD: That's what brought Emily Taylor out to the game.
EMILY TAYLOR: Sometimes I forget that there's a football game going on 'cause I'm only here for her. She's next after this.
SEWARD: Taylor comes to watch her niece Sydney cheer on the sidelines.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Junior co-captain, two time All American - Sydney Wilber.
TAYLOR: Let's go, Sydney.
SEWARD: Taylor is a Democrat living in Deer Park, a conservative suburb of Houston. But she says something feels different this cycle.
TAYLOR: The other day, I took some back roads, and I saw two houses that had Talarico and Gina Hinojosa signs outside. And it made me so hopeful because I do not remember seeing that during Kamala Harris' run.
SEWARD: Recent polling supports Taylor's hunch. Democrats Gina Hinojosa and James Talarico have forced Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton into competitive contests. Both races are effectively tied.
TAYLOR: If we can do it, this is the year.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Deer Park, first down.
SCHUTLZ: I figure it'll still stay red.
SEWARD: When Eric Schutlz heads to the poll this year, he says he'll vote Republican with two specific groups of people on his mind.
SCHUTLZ: You know, and at the end of the day, you know, kids and elderly are important, right? Elderly paved the way, kids are the future. So those are important topics that need to be taken care of.
SEWARD: And despite all the talk of a tight race, he's not convinced the state will change parties this year.
SCHUTLZ: The dividing line comes in bigger cities, but when you get in smaller communities, they're more like-minded. And, you know, I think it'll stay the same.
SEWARD: Nate Esser, sitting a couple dozen bleachers down, is hoping Schutlz is wrong.
NATE ESSER: I'm hoping people will wake up and realize that current administration is not doing anything for them right now.
SEWARD: And Esser has a long list of concerns.
ESSER: Inflation, the economy - I mean, my 401K is doing great, but, you know, that doesn't benefit most people. Yeah, gas prices, fairness to people, like, treating everyone fairly, equal rights for trans people, gay people, people of color. Like, I'm sick of this ICE crap.
SEWARD: Immigration enforcement has taken center stage in political debates across Texas after a series of incidents involving ICE agents and allegations of excessive force. But still, Esser isn't sure many others in the Deer Park community agree with him.
ESSER: You've interviewed a lot of people around here. And my guess is I'm one of the few that has spoken like this to you.
SEWARD: I tell him it's actually been a mixed bag.
ESSER: Really?
SEWARD: Fifty/fifty.
ESSER: Really? That's - that makes me feel good then. That surprises me, yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: What color (inaudible)?
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: Blue.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Blue. OK.
STEPHANIE PETERSON: I need two chili cheese hot dogs.
SEWARD: Stephanie Peterson manages the concession booth.
PETERSON: Plain nachos.
SEWARD: She makes sure the shelves stay stocked and keeps an eye on rising prices, both for the booth and for her own family's pantry.
PETERSON: Just the prices going up, it's killing us. Basically, now you have to have two income family just to survive, and we don't have that. So it's like you don't know how you're going to survive anymore.
SEWARD: In the fourth quarter of the election, for either party to win, they'll need all voters ready to jump off the bench. But Peterson, who voted for Trump in 2024, says she might stay home on Election Day.
PETERSON: I don't know. It depends. I'm undecided. I'll just say that.
SEWARD: From the economy to immigration, folks in the crowd have their own priorities, and they want very different outcomes on election day.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Touchdown Deer.
(CHEERING)
SEWARD: But as the game comes to a close, their voices blend into one, cheering together for the same team under the Friday night lights.
For NPR News, I'm Bianca Seward in Deer Park, Texas.
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