Blogs: Joshua Blank, PhD

Some in the Tea Party faction of the Texas GOP are encouraging talk of a challenge to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, raising a question: Is he vulnerable to a challenge?

Education could be a tricky issue for gubernatorial candidates in 2014, with both the Democratic and Republican nominee having to navigate through unexpected cross-currents among their own constituencies.

While the Hispanic vote has been the focus of much of the analysis of Democrats’ prospects for turning the Republican tide, in the short term, they will almost certainly need to look to suburban women — especially if Wendy Davis is at the top of the ticket.

For all the advantages that have lent the feel of an unofficial coronation to his candidacy for governor, Attorney General Greg Abbott remains an undefined figure among many Texas voters, including as many as 40 percent of Republican primary voters.

Public opinion on voting rights in Texas neither paints a dour picture for gubernatorial hopeful Greg Abbott nor presents a clear path forward for Democrats.

The return of abortion bills during the special sessions presents opportunities for both Greg Abbott and Wendy Davis to consolidate support and financial backers. But the choices they make could result in a potentially complicated general election dynamic.

It's not surprising that the political class hasn't rallied to one side or the other on the debate over NSA surveillance; the public is sending oblique messages to its elected officials.

While most Americans do in fact have an opinion on the Affordable Care Act, to say that they understand it — at all, let alone “all too well” — runs contrary to the data currently available.

Many statewide Republican candidates are running to the right to position themselves for the primaries, but the Speaker of the House enjoys a rarified position: An office with statewide reach that doesn't appear on the statewide ballot.

Data from the University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll suggests that the issues Sen. Dan Patrick invokes in the latest ad in his bid for lieutenant governor serve up very inviting bait for conservative voters, the big fish in GOP primary elections.