A new University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll finds the race for U.S. Senate remains highly competitive, while a majority of Texans say they oppose the construction of data centers in their communities.
The survey, conducted June 5-12 among 1,200 registered voters, found Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton leading Democrat State Rep. James Talarico by just one percentage point, 43 percent to 42 percent. The result falls within the poll’s margin of error.
The poll comes less than a month after Paxton secured the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate by defeating incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in a runoff election.
According to the survey, Republican voters have largely consolidated behind Paxton. Eighty-four percent of Republicans said they would support him in a head-to-head matchup with Talarico, while 88 percent of Democrats backed the Democrat nominee.
The Senate contest appears to be the most competitive statewide race tested in the survey.
Gov. Greg Abbott led Democrat Gina Hinojosa 47 percent to 40 percent, while Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick held a 43 percent to 36 percent advantage over Democrat Vikki Goodwin.
In the race to replace Paxton as attorney general, Republican Mayes Middleton led Democrat Nathan Johnson 41 percent to 36 percent.
Beyond the election matchups, the poll found significant opposition to data center construction as Texas continues to attract large-scale projects tied to artificial intelligence and cloud computing.
Fifty-six percent of Texans said they oppose the construction of a data center in their community, including 42 percent who said they strongly oppose such projects. Just 29 percent expressed support.
Opposition was especially pronounced in rural and suburban areas, where many existing and proposed projects are located.
The findings come as state leaders increasingly focus on the impact of large-scale data center development.
Earlier this month, Gov. Greg Abbott directed the Public Utility Commission and ERCOT to ensure Texans are not left paying for electric grid upgrades tied to the rapid expansion of data centers. Abbott instructed regulators to pursue policies requiring data centers to bear their own infrastructure costs, minimize impacts on local communities, and reduce pressure on residential electric bills.
The governor also proposed requiring water-efficient cooling technologies, annual reporting of electricity and water usage, and the elimination of certain tax incentives for data center projects.
“Texas will continue to welcome innovation and investment,” Abbott wrote, but growth should occur “without placing undue burdens on Texans and local communities.”
The poll was conducted online through YouGov and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 2.83 percentage points.
