Trump and Cruz Lead in Texas Poll

A new Texas poll shows former President Donald Trump with a significant lead over President Joe Biden and Sen. Ted Cruz leading his Democratic opponent, Colin Allred.

The Marist poll shows Trump leading Biden by 11% in a head-to-head race in the Lone Star State and Cruz (R-TX) leading Rep. Allred (D-TX) by 6%. Biden had a 37% approval rating in the poll — a 2% decrease from the last Texas Marist poll in October 2022. 

Biden won Texas independents in 2020 by 6% but trails Trump with independent voters by 15% in the poll. Trump leads Biden by 12% in the poll’s election question that included Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who pulled 15%. More than 60% of respondents believe Biden’s mental fitness is an issue. 

The poll included interviews with more than 1,200 Texans between March 18 and 21.

Allred outperforms Biden in the poll as he dodges questions on whether the two will campaign together, as previously reported by The Dallas Express. Cruz leads Allred by 6% among Texas registered voters overall and 8% among independents. More than half of respondents in the poll said they had not heard of Allred. 

The U.S. Senate race for the Texas seat has limited polling data. A February poll from the University of Texas showed the race tied at 41%, while another February poll from YouGov showed Cruz leading by 14%.

The RealClearPolitics aggregate average shows Trump leading Biden by 1.1%. Biden led at this point in the election in 2020 by 7%. 

The Marist poll found that 27% of Texas respondents listed immigration as their top issue, followed by inflation at 26% and preserving democracy at 24%.