Blogs: February 2026

The latest UT/Texas Politics Project Poll finds the three-way Republican race remains likely headed to a run-off, while Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett maintains her advantage in the Democratic contest, even as State Representative James Talarico continues making inroads among a Democratic electorate to whom he was largely unknown prior to his first statewide campaign

With President Donald Trump delivering his State of the Union Address Tuesday night, the latest University of Texas/Texas Politics Project Poll finds the president hanging on to his support among Texas Republicans even as he struggles with stubbornly low ratings from Texans outside his base, and with slipping approval of his performance on key economic areas of concern to most Texans.

The University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll regularly asks Texas voters to provide their assessment of national, state, and personal economic conditions. In this post, trend graphics for those views are presented and updated with each survey.

In this week's Second Reading podcast, James Henson talks with Brad Johnson about the newly launched Texas Bullpen, where Johnson is a co-founder and reporter. They then talk about the strange case of the El Paso airport closure and initial applications for the Texas ESA program before checking in on both the overall vibes and some particular races in the 2026 election.

The University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll regularly asks Texas voters to provide their assessment of national and statewide political leaders. This post presents the trend graphics for those views updated with each survey.

The Texas Politics Project compiles the results of Texas elections for various statewide offices and elections.

Just how State Representative James Talarico's progressive Christian theology lands with the primary electorate he needs to win over to gain the nomination is an open question - a question not as straightforward as it might seem.

James Henson and Joshua Blank look at three big stories in Texas that generated national attention as election season heats up in the state: the special election for Senate District 9, Colin Allred's surprising re-emergence in the Democratic Senate nomination race, and Donald Trump's public musings about endorsing in the Republican Senate race.