June 22, 2016 1:05 PM

Texas Democrats tout poll showing Trump may endanger some GOP state lawmakers

31% of likely voters not sure how they’ll vote for president; 45% say corruption is “widespread” in Texas government

Editor’s note: The full poll, with crosstabs, is available for our subscribers at the end of this story – SB

A group of Democratic state lawmakers unveiled a poll on Wednesday showing that even many Republican Texans have the kind of reservations about presumptive GOP Nominee Donald Trump that could translate to some success for the minority party in legislative races this fall and help them build toward future gains in The Legislature.

Republicans, naturally, were quick say the poll’s findings are being promoted by “a group of individuals who are incapable of winning a statewide election.” But Democrats said the numbers they’re looking at have nothing to do with making this a swing state.

Democrats instead argued that they are trying to make a clear-eyed assessment of whether the battlefield is as it was in 2014 – a non-presidential cycle in which their ticket lost by more than 20 points – or if the political terrain has changed thanks to a “strong” Democratic presumptive nominee in Hillary Clinton versus an unconventional and “weak” GOP presumptive nominee in Trump.

By Scott Braddock