State Rep. James Talarico of Austin and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Dallas are in a dead heat in Texas’ Senate Democratic primary, according to new public polling released Thursday, suggesting the race is up for grabs with less than three weeks until early voting begins.
In a sample of 1,290 likely Democratic primary voters conducted from Jan. 14 to Jan. 21, Crockett led Talarico by one percentage point, 38% to 37%, with 21% of voters undecided. The survey, conducted by Texas Public Opinion Research, a nonpartisan public opinion group, had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.
The two Democrats, who are both seen as rising stars in the party, are competing to take on the eventual Republican nominee in November, when Democrats are hoping voters’ discontent with the Trump administration will help flip a statewide seat blue for the first time in over 30 years. Across the aisle, Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn is trying to fend off primary challenges from Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt of Houston.
