Paxton, Crockett Leading in Primary Polls

Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democratic U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett are leading their respective primary campaigns for U.S. Senate, according to a poll released released last week by the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs, the Austin American-Statesman reported. Early voting began Feb. 17 and runs through Feb. 27.

Among Republicans, Paxton led incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn 38% to 31%. U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt polled at 17%, making it likely that race will go to a runoff in May if these margins hold. Among Democrats, Crockett led with 47% while state Rep. James Talarico was favored by 39% of respondents.

The margin of error for both parties was plus or minus 4 percentage points. The election is on March 3.

Roy Leading in Polls in Attorney General’s Race 

In the race to succeed Paxton as attorney general, U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, with 33% in the latest poll leads a crowded GOP field by 10 percentage points, with state Sen. Mayes Middleton in second at 23%. The Texas Tribune reported state Sen. Joan Huffman polled at 13%, and Aaron Reitz, a former federal assistant attorney general, trailed at 6%.

However, 25% of those polled remain undecided in that race.

On the Democratic side, state Sen. Nathan Johnson led with 25% of the 550 people polled, followed by former Galveston mayor Joe Jaworski at 22%. Attorney and former FBI agent Tony Box held 13%. A majority of those polled said they didn’t know enough about any of the candidates to express a preference.

That poll was also conducted by the Hobby School of Public Affairs.

Fed Predicts Job Growth in Texas in 2026 

A new employment forecast by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas predicts the state will add jobs in 2026, after a flat 2025, The Dallas Morning News reported. The bank’s forecast predicts Texas employment will grow by 1.1%, or about 155,000 jobs. That is about half of job growth the state has experienced in recent years. “We’ve run our models. We’re going with the 1.1% growth, so that is a significant increase from zero, certainly,” said Pia Orrenius, a senior economist at the Dallas Fed. The slower-than-normal employment growth is partly attributable to the Trump administration’s restrictive immigration policies and enforcement operations, according to some economists. In a report published by the Fed in October, the authors said the immigration policies were negatively affecting one in five Texas businesses.

“The stepped-up visibility and intensity of enforcement have produced a chilling effect,” the authors wrote. “As fear spreads in immigrant communities, foreign-born individuals are more likely to miss work or school and less likely to venture out to shops and restaurants.”