Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott leads Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa less than two weeks before the election. The latest poll from the Hobby School of Public Affairs at the University of Houston shows 49% of respondents backing the incumbent and 46% backing his rival. Abbott is seeking a fourth term as head of the Lone Star State.
The governor’s undeniable advantage is that his three previous terms in the state’s highest office have made him a widely recognized figure. According to the survey, an overwhelming majority of respondents say they know Greg Abbott, while as many as 13% say they don’t know Hinojosa well enough to have any opinion of her.
In the background of the Hinojosa-Abbott contest is a third candidate, Pat Dixon of the Libertarian Party, who received just 2% of responses. Another 3% of respondents are undecided.
Republican candidates also lead in the other races for top statewide offices. Incumbent Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has 47% support to 42% for Democrat Vikki Goodwin. The attorney general’s race produced identical numbers, with Mayes Middleton leading Nathan Johnson. In the race for comptroller of public accounts, Don Huffines received 47% and Sarah Eckhardt 40%. The smallest gap was recorded in the race for railroad commissioner, where Republican Bo French won 45% support and Democrat Jon Rosenthal 43%.
The survey was conducted Oct. 10-14 among 2,000 likely voters in Texas. Among respondents, 42% were Republicans, 31% were Democrats and 23% were independents. The margin of error was estimated at 2.19 percentage points.
Editor: JŁ
