DALLAS — With less than a week before Super Tuesday, Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are tied for support among Texas Democrats in a poll released Wednesday.
Biden and Sanders each claimed 24% of support. Mike Bloomberg was third with 17%, Elizabeth Warren followed fourth at 14% and Pete Buttigieg had 10%, according to the poll.
This is the last such survey before Super Tuesday. and could provide the most insight on how Texas voters will cast ballots next week.
A Democratic organization in Austin called Progress Texas sponsored the poll of 1,045 likely Texas Democratic voters. It was conducted by Public Policy Polling— a reputable polling firm— between Feb. 24 and 25.
“Democratic primary voters are hungry for a fighter who embraces progressive values and will take action on critical issues like health care and climate change,” Ed Espinoza, the executive director of Progress Texas, said in a statement released with the survey. “Candidates have to be for something, these voters are telling us that simply running as ‘not Trump’ is not enough. They want to see candidates take a stand.”
Mike Bloomberg has the largest statewide operation of any Democratic presidential candidate in Texas with 19 offices and 185 staff, his campaign said in a conference call yesterday before the poll was released.
“Polls are polls, but at the end of the day we feel like our ground game is solid,” said Ashlea Graves Turner, Bloomberg’s state director in Texas. “We want to come in number one.”
Though he has participated in a couple debates and poured tens of millions into TV commercials and digital ads in Texas, next Tuesday will be the first time that Bloomberg actually appears on a ballot.
“I’ve been in this business for 30 years,” said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who serves as Bloomberg’s national campaign co-chair. "Initially, I even questioned Mike not participating in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina and then coming in at this point in time. But quite frankly, I’ve rethought that approach. These are unconventional times and it’s going to take someone thinking outside the box.”
But the Progress Texas poll showed Bloomberg still has work to do with Texas Democrats.
Bloomberg had the worst favorability rating among the top candidates, with 41% favorability. 39% of those polled considered him unfavorable. Warren, Biden and Sanders led in this category.
Still, this poll was taken after the Nevada debate, when many analysts said Bloomberg had a dismal debate performance and Warren excelled. Last night in South Carolina, the leading Democrats debated again.
Among the issues most important to Democrats, healthcare topped the list, followed by climate change, voting rights and gun safety.
The Progress Texas poll was made up of 58% women and 42% men.
To see the full results, click here.