With the Texas primaries for governor out of the way, the Republican candidate, Governor Greg Abbott and the Democratic candidate Beto O’Rourke now have the rest of the year campaigning in the state of Texas for the coming elections in November.
The polarizing election will be interesting for the Lone Star State, with more Texans citing economic concerns amongst border security, previously the dominant political situation in Texas.
The Texas Lyceum Poll, published April 1st, stated that the primary concern for Texas voters in the United States is the economy. For the State specifically, border security remains a primary issue, but now along with inflation and rising prices.
The Texas Lyceum polls records the top issues across Texas according to a 1200 sample. This is to help Texas policy makers be aware of the concerns of their constituents.
According to the polling, Texans are stating that economic conditions for the country, the state, and both themselves personally and their children, are getting worse. Lately with the rise in fuel costs, housing, tax appraisals, inflation, and rising prices, a majority of Texans are anxious about the future of the nation and state.
“…maybe most surprisingly, these problems are not concentrated in any one part of the state, or among any single group,” said a quote from the press release. Across the state, residents are feeling the rising inflation and expenses.
Specifically, housing and the price of goods is a top concern Texans have. The Texas Lyceum poll found Texans negatively view the cost of living and expenses. The quality of roads (41%), opportunity for home ownership (40%) and ecnomic situation (45%) were rated amongst Texans as “poor” or “terrible.”
The state of the economy and rise in prices is giving Texans anxiety about the future as well. 35% of Texans are fearful to predict their child’s economic situation will be worse. The predictions for where America is headed is not great. With economic disappointments in our state, we should have an interesting election season this year in Texas and across the nation.
Rendering to his website, Beto O’Rourke plans to “work with local leaders to reform zoning laws, incentivize housing development, and make affordable housing a priority…in order to put an end to skyrocketing property taxes.”
Part of Governor Abbott’s economic initiatives are “Providing regulatory relief for businesses, preventing a large spike in unemployment insurance rates, and ensuring PPP loan forgiveness is not taxable.” Additionally, Abbott’s website mentions his plan to provide “property tax relief” and “balancing the budget without raising taxes.”
[Story by Jacob Lehrer]