The Texas Politics Project
Approval of Congress
27%of Texas voters approve of the job Congress is doing – 53% disapprove (August 2025)
Federal spending and Texas
36%of Texas voters say reducing federal spending would be good for Texas; 46% say it would be bad (August 2025)
Property Taxes
47%of Texas voters expect the property taxes Texans pay to increase in the next few years, while 18% expect them to decrease (August 2025)
Latest Analysis
Second Reading: Assessing the State of the Constitutional Order in the U.S.
Comparative constitutional scholar Zachary Elkins joins James Henson to discuss the state of Constitutional features like the separation of powers and checks and balances during the norms-challenging Trump presidency.
Second Reading Podcast: Gov. Abbott Deploys the National Guard to Illinois
After catching up on the federal shutdown, James Henson and Joshua Blank look at the political dynamics around Gov. Greg Abbott's fast deployment of Texas National Guard troops to Illinois at the order of President Trump, including a look at Texas attitudes toward Abbott's response to Operation Jade Helm a decade ago.
Second Reading Podcast: Shutdown politics and public opinion in Texas
James Henson and Joshua Blank dig into what UT/Texas Politics Project polling can tell us about the public opinion context for the government shutdown in Texas.
Governor Abbott’s Job Approval Ratings Slip Through Two Special Sessions
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Texans Expectations about the Economy Souring
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Events
Special Session Review
The Professional Advocacy Association of Texas (PAAT) hosted an online review of the second special session of the 89th Texas Legislature on Wednesday, September 3, featuring a discussion with Gromer Jeffers, Jr., political writer for the Dallas Morning-News, Brad Johnson of The Texan, Mrk Jones of the Baker Institute at Rice University, and Harvey Kronberg, CEO and publisher of Harvey Kronberg's Quorum Report, moderated by Texas Politics Project Executive Director James Henson. You can hear a recording on the September 4 Second Reading podcast.
Internships
Legislative Intern
Offered by: Office of Senator Sarah Eckhardt
Intern in the Office of Congressman Randy Weber
Offered by: The Office of Congressman Randy Weber
Spring 2026 Congressional DC Internship
Offered by: Congressman Vicente Gonzalez
Congressional Intern
Offered by: U.S. Senator John Cornyn
News Media
How John Cornyn’s historic gun safety bill has become a reelection liability
Alejandro Serrano reports on how critics accusation of Cornyn's capitulation to Democrats’ gun control demands is influencing the 2026 primary.
A battle over rainbow sidewalks is playing out in Texas
Michael Adkison reports on responses to Gov. Abbott's order requiring cities and counties remove what he described as political ideologies from roads within 30 days or risk being cut off from state funding.
Greg Abbott Has Taken Texas to the Top
Allen Greenblatt writes that Gov. Abbott has his critics but there's no denying Texas' economic success during his time in office.
12 New GOP seats out of thin air? Republicans are halfway there
Zachary B. Wolf draw on Texas Politics Project polling in an assessment of expectations of potential GOP gains as a result of mid-decade redistricting.
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