Cruz was favored by 29 percent of voters polled by Emerson College in the Lone Star State, with Trump at 28 percent.
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And Cruz certainly is not taking Texas for granted – working the state’s political machinery since the moment he announced and on Wednesday rolling out his highest-ranking endorsement yet anywhere in the country, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. He’s expected to have at least one big rally here before the primary. And the first clue to the Texas vote will come Friday, when the in-person early voting period ends.
The Trump campaign did not respond to requests for comment about its advertising plans.
In other states, he has held a mix of large rallies and town hall meetings, while dominating local and national media coverage.
Cruz campaign co-chairman Bob Vander Plaats, president of Family Leader, an advocacy group, believes Cruz is “doing well”, citing Cruz’s win in Iowa.
“The sooner we can get this race narrowed, I think the easier it’s going to be to stop Donald Trump, he said”.
As Texas attorney general, Abbott tapped Cruz as solicitor general.
Trump is coming off three wins in a row in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada.
“We select our delegates, if you do not know this, by congressional districts”, said Patrick to Republicans last night.
Lewis, a caregiver from Irving, has been making phone calls and knocking on doors for the Trump campaign. Donald Trump will have delegates.
Blue Trump campaign signs lined the store windows.
The message going into the March 1 Super Tuesday votes, he said, has to be that Cruz can beat Trump and then beat potential Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in the general election.
The Texas senator’s poor showing in SC, particularly among evangelicals there – he finished six points behind Trump, and only five points ahead of Rubio – emboldened Rubio backers at the CNP gathering to question Cruz’s prospects moving forward.
He acknowledges that the senator doesn’t have an easy path in Texas because of the way delegates are apportioned. Winning more than 50 percent of the vote statewide would net him 47 delegates.
That’s not easy to do, with Trump and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio – though holding back from attacking the Floridian.
Trump, in his victory speech, took on the notion advanced by both Rubio and Cruz that if more GOP candidates drop out of the race, they’ll coalesce around an alternative. Those charges have stuck to him because he has a lean and hungry look that worries people.
“Most people are falling behind Rubio, especially the electeds”, said Steve Munisteri, a former chairman of the Texas GOP who had become a senior adviser to Sen. Cruz’s key allies in the conservative movement have gone into damage-control mode, assuring nervous supporters of his continued viability.
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“He has very much toughened his stance because he was losing”, Trump said, pointing to Cruz’ support for building a wall on the USA southern border and his recent shift on how to deport undocumented immigrants. “And the strongest non-Trump candidate will get the endorsement of the establishment”.
