Texans growing more pessimistic about the economy, new poll finds

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AUSTIN, Texas - More Texans are growing concerned about the economy and their personal economic outlook, according to a new poll from the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas.

When asked, 43% of Texas voters said their family's economic conditions were worse off compared to a year ago, while 21% said they were better off compared to last year. Thirty-five percent said they were about the same.

Those polled cited rising prices and the economy as the most important problems facing the country. Among the people polled, 53% said the national economy was worse off compared to last year, with 20% saying it is somewhat worse and 33% saying the national economy is a lot worse off. Twenty-seven percent said the economy is better off.

Nearly half of those asked said the state's economy is also worse compared to a year ago, with 23% saying the state's economy is a lot worse off and 23% saying it is somewhat worse off compared to last year. Only 26% said the Texas economy was better off, while 25% said it was about the same.

The price of food and other goods was a point of concern for those polled, with 90% saying they were concerned with prices. The cost of healthcare is also weighing on Texans' minds, with 88% saying they are concerned. 

Views on the federal shutdown and its impact on Texas families

While 90% of those polled said they have heard about the government shutdown, 44% said it has had no impact on their families, while 39% said it hurt their families.

A majority of those polled, however, said the shutdown was hurting the state, with 61% saying it was bad for Texas.

As for how Texans view lawmakers' handling of the shutdown, 38% said they approved of the way President Donald Trump is handling the shutdown, while 51% disapprove. Congressional Republicans fared worse than the president, with 35% of those polled approving of how they are handling the shutdown and 50% disapproving. Congressional Democrats fared the worst of all, with 31% of those polled approving and 52% disapproving of their handling of the shutdown.

Those numbers skew based on party alignment, with 76% of Texas Republicans saying they approve of Trump's handling of the shutdown and 73% saying they approve of the way Congressional Republicans are handling the shutdown. On the other side, 64% of Texas Democrats approve of the way Congressional Democrats are handling the shutdown.

How do Texans view Congressional and state leaders?

National party leaders have low approval ratings in the poll.

Trump's job approval rating came in at 42% overall, though 84% of Republicans polled said they approved of the job he was doing.

Overall, Congress has just a 19% approval rating among those polled and 61% said they disapprove. House Speaker Mike Johnson had a 30% approval rating and a 40% disapproval rating. His House of Representatives counterpart, Hakeem Jefferies, had a 23% approval rating and 42% disapproval rating.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune's approval rating sits at 21%, with a 34% disapproval rating. On the other side, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Shumer has a 19% approval rating and a 53% disapproval rating.

As far as Texas leaders go, 32% of those polled approve of the job Gov. Greg Abbott is doing, while 47% disapprove. Texas Republicans largely see Abbott as doing a good job, with 76% approving compared to 13% disapproving.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has only a 29% approval rating, with 46% disapproving of his job performance.

Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows has a 15% approval rating and a 37% disapproval rating.

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has a 35% approval rating among those polled, with 50% saying they disapprove.

His upper chamber partner, Sen. John Cornyn, has a 25% approval rating with a 49% disapproval rating.

Cornyn's opponent in next year's Republican Senate primary, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, was given a 29% approval rating and a 45% disapproval rating.

The Texas Politics Project polled 1,200 registered voters in the state from Oct. 10-12. The margin of error in the poll is +/-2.83%.