A majority of Sun Belt state voters believe economies opened too early because of White House pressure, poll shows


Former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, is reportedly taking a cautious approach to states like Texas, but two new polls released Sunday will seemingly bolster the hopes of his supporters who want him to go all in.
A survey conducted by The Dallas Morning News and the University of Texas at Tyler found Biden to have a five-point lead over President Trump, with UT-Tyler political scientist Kenneth Bryant Jr. describing the jump as a result of Trump losing with independents and "weak partisans."
A CBS News poll conducted by YouGov indicated the loss of support likely has to do with how voters feel about Trump's coronavirus response. The CBS Poll isn't quite so high on Biden's chances in Texas — Trump holds a one-point advantage over his challenger — but it does show the former vice president is in the race there, as well as two other key Sun Belt states, Florida and Arizona.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
All three states are struggling with coronavirus surges, and voters aren't happy about it. The results show 69 percent of Arizonans, 65 percent of Floridians, and 62 percent of Texans think efforts to contain the virus are going poorly. About six in 10 voters in all three states believe their economies opened too early. In Florida 68 percent think that was because of pressure from the Trump administration. The number is a little lower in Texas at 61 percent, but 70 percent of Arizonans think their government was under pressure from the White House.
The Dallas Morning News poll was conducted between June 29 and July 7, sampling 898 registered Texas voters. The margin of error was 2.24 percent. CBS News and YouGov conducted three separate polls in Florida, Texas, and Arizona between July 7-10. The margin of error was 3.5, 3.3, and 3.8, respectively.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
'Forever': Judy Blume's controversial novel gets a modern adaptation
The Explainer The Netflix series gives the 1975 novel all the trappings of modern teen life
-
Why does the GOP want to ban state-level AI regulation for a decade?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION House Republicans are pushing to block states from making their own AI laws for the next ten years, even as expert warn the results could be disastrous.
-
6 elegant Queen Anne Victorian homes
Feature Featuring original diamond-glass doors in New York and a registered historic landmark in Arkansas
-
Gabbard fires intelligence chiefs after Venezuela report
speed read Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has fired the top two officials leading the National Intelligence Council
-
Trump vows to lift Syria sanctions
speed read The move would help the new government stabilize the country following years of civil war
-
Senate rejects Trump's Library of Congress takeover
speed read Congress resisted the president's attempts to control 'the legislative branch's premier research body'
-
Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel
speed read Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old soldier, was the final living US citizen held by the militant group
-
White Afrikaners land in US as Trump-declared refugees
speed read An exception was made to Trump's near-total ban on admitting refugees for the white South Africans
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Trump, UK's Starmer outline first post-tariff deal
speed read President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Kier Starmer struck a 'historic' agreement to eliminate some of the former's imposed tariffs