Cruz Leads Trump in Texas but not by Enough to Sweep States Super Tuesday Delegates

Winning isnt the game; its about the number of delegates. HOUSTON Texas (Texas Insider Report)  Statewide poll results published today by Houston Public Media & the University of Houstons Hobby Center for Public Policy show that Sen. Ted Cruz has a 14-point lead over Donald Trump among registered Texas Republican voters who are likely to vote on Super Tuesday. Although Cruz is ahead in his home state the poll indicates he is falling short of the 50 threshold needed to capture all 155 Texas GOP delegates from Trump.   With 19 of poll respondents still undecided Cruzs performance during Thursday nights Republican Presidential Debate looms large since it is his last opportunity to sway Texas voters before the Super Tuesday primaries on March 1.

Winning isnt the game; its about the number of delegates said Richard Murray University of Houston professor and co-director of the poll.  The Houston debate is a high stakes contest especially for Cruz who needs to win a large majority of delegates in his home state.

What will voters be listening for during the presidential debate? Poll results show that Republican primary voters in Texas value:

1. Honesty & Trustworthiness - 34.9
2. Someone who shares my values - 22.9
3. Electability - 13 and 
4. Experience - 10.4

Anger at the way the federal government works is also a clear sentiment expressed in the poll by 77 of respondents. Even more revealing is that among those Republicans surveyed the blame for whats wrong was not placed solely on the opposing party. Among poll respondents 47.9 blamed both parties while 45.2 pointed to President Obama and the Democrats.

Houston Public Media is working every day to keep voters informed of election developments said Lisa Trapani Shumate associate vice president and general manager of Houston Public Media. 

We are proud to partner with the experts at the University of Houston Hobby Center for Public Policy to provide this insightful data on the eve of the Republican debate.

Poll results are based on 415 telephone interviews conducted randomly among statewide Republican registered voters who are likely to vote in the primary election. The 25-question poll conducted Feb. 12-22 was developed and directed by political policy experts and co-directors Murray and Robert M. Stein research associate at the Hobby Center for Public Policy. Two samples of eligible voters were used. The first sample included one group of registered voters who voted in one of three elections including the 2008 or 2012 Republican primary election or the 2015 general election. The second sample included all other registered voters. Complete poll results and Texas primary news stories are available at houstonpublicmedia.org/election2016. Follow the conversation on Twitter using #TXDecide.