A new New York Times poll of likely voters in Texas shows President Donald Trump expanding his lead there. The RealClearPolitics average of polls shows former Vice President Joe Biden losing the state by a projected 3.2 points. The most recent Times poll has Trump winning by four points, up one point from the same pollster a month ago. The latest New York Times poll has Trump beating Biden 47 percent to 43 percent.
The New York Times poll asked likely voters whether they were favorable or unfavorable to Trump, and the same question was asked about Biden. A slight majority of likely voters, 51 percent, were favorable toward Trump, with 45 percent unfavorable. By contrast, Joe Biden was favorable with only 45 percent of likely Texas voters, and 49 percent view him unfavorably.
A slight majority of Texas voters polled reported that they approve of the president’s job performance, 51-46 percent.
The New York Times’ Nate Cohn says Trump’s lead is in some measure thanks to stronger than normal support for a Republican candidate from Hispanic voters. This has offset the losses Trump has faced from suburban voters. The Trump administration has overseen economic gains for minorities, resulting in stronger than typical support from them for a Republican candidate.
While the New York Times poll shows a slight increase in support for Trump, a Biden-friendly poll from the Dallas Morning News asserts that Biden has the lead in the Lonestar State. Other polls don’t show that result.
President Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in Texas in 2016 52 percent to 43 percent. Democrats have invested heavily in the state in the hope of turning it blue.