Politics

New Poll Shows Good News For Ted Cruz As Dems Stumble Toward Mid-Terms

No featured image available

Sen. Ted Cruz is expanding his lead over Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke ahead of the midterm elections in November, according to a new poll Quinnipiac University published Wednesday.

Cruz has captured an 11 point lead over O’Rourke, who trailed the Texas Republican by less than three points in April, the new survey shows. Fifty percent of Texans backed Cruz, while 39 percent supported O’Rourke in the coming U.S. Senate race.

Cruz is nearly universally known within the state, with 49 percent of those surveyed viewing him positively while 38 percent viewed him unfavorably, the poll noted. The survey was conducted May 23 through May 29 and had a 3.8 percent margin of error — nearly 1,000 people across Texas were surveyed.

O’Rourke is still a relative unknown, according to the poll — 30 percent of Texans had a positive view of him, while 19 percent had a negative impression of him. Fifty percent of people had never heard of him. A Quinnipiac poll from April shows Cruz barely edging out O’Rourke — 47 percent to 44 percent. (RELATED: Early Polls Spell Problems For Sen. Cruz As He Beats Back Insurgent Bid From Beto)

Republicans outperformed Democrats during Texas’ primary elections. Democratic turnout during the primary was up 84 percent from four years ago, but Republicans added to their record numbers from 2014, according to data from the secretary of state’s office. GOP turnout was the highest since the 2010 midterm. (RELATED: O’Rourke Secures Nomination For Texas Senate Seat Amid High Democratic Turnout)

Republicans easily power-armed Democrats at the polls — 1.54 million to 1.04 million — suggesting O’Rourke and Lupe Valdez, who is running to unseat Gov. Greg Abbott, could face stiff winds come November. The new May survey showed Valdez trailing Republican Gov. Greg Abbott with 34 percent to 53 percent.

Follow Chris White on Facebook and Twitter