With only two weeks to go before the General Election, Democrat U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico continues to cling to a narrow lead in his race.
Talarico is set to face Republican Ken Paxton in the Nov. 3 General Election in what has become a closely watched and highly contentious contest to replace outgoing U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in the upper house of Congress. At stake is an opportunity for Texas Democrats to send one of their own to Washington for the first time in three decades.
A new poll from the University of Houston's Hobby School of Public Affairs found Talarico leading Paxton by two percentage points, 48% to 46%, with 3% planning to vote for Libertarian Ted Brown and another 3% still undecided. The poll surveyed 2,000 likely
Texas voters between Oct. 10 and Oct. 14.
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Talarico continues to have the support of most Democrats in Texas, with 98% saying they plan to vote for him in November, as well as Independents, 60% of which said they are swinging for Talarico. Paxton, on the other hand, has the support of 88% of Republican voters and 32% of Independents.
As has been the case throughout the campaign, Talarico continues to outpace Paxton in favorability — 47% of respondents said they view Talarico favorably compared to 50% who view him unfavorably, while 41% of respondents said they view Paxton favorably compared to 57% who view him unfavorably.
When it comes to demographics, Talarico continues to lead among Black voters, voters between the ages of 18 and 34, and voters in urban areas. Paxton continues to lead among rural voters, voters 55 and older, and white voters.
The poll also found that 54% of respondents had an unfavorable view of President Donald Trump and 55% said Texas is headed in the wrong direction.
Adam Powell covers government and politics for the El Paso Times and can be reached via email at apowell@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Talarico narrowly leads Paxton as Texas US Senate race stays tight
