Greg Abbott Has Won Over Gen Z, Millennials

Texas Governor Greg Abbott's popularity among millennials and Generation Z has grown quite drastically within the past year, according to new statewide polling.

Abbott and his efforts related to the U.S.-Mexico border have galvanized conservatives across the country in the face of record numbers of migrant encounters under the Biden administration. Abbott and the federal government have continually squabbled, leading to lawsuits adjudicated by the U.S. Supreme Court over whether razor wire erected by Texas officials could be removed by federal Border Patrol agents. Numbers in Texas decreased between December and January by half.

Abbott, whose statewide popularity has also increased to the same levels as former President Donald Trump, announced on Friday that construction has begun on an 80-acre military base camp to continue to deter illegal immigration. It will extend along the Rio Grande and six miles south to Shelby Park, housing some 1,800 soldiers with a possibility for future expansion.

Approximately 24 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds (Gen Z) "strongly approve" of the job Abbott is doing, according to 1,200 Texas registered voters surveyed from February 2-12 by The Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin.

Another 35 percent of that same age group said they "somewhat approve" of Abbott's job while 15 percent neither approve nor disapprove. About 20 percent of those respondents "strongly disapprove" of the job he's done.

Among those aged 30-44 (millennials), 17 percent strongly approve of Abbott and 31 percent somewhat approve. Another 15 percent neither approve nor disapprove, while 27 percent strongly disapproved.

The polls show a different picture of Abbott as opposed to last year when respondents aged 18-29 expressed disapproval of his job performance by a total of 44-35 percent margin.

Those aged 30-44 are more varied but have built apparent trust in the governor. In last year's survey, 42 percent of respondents approved of Abbott while 42 percent disapproved.

The new poll also found that Abbott's popularity waned when individuals aged 45-64 were surveyed, with 38 percent of respondents saying they strongly disapprove of Abbott's job performance. However, 48 percent of respondents in that age bracket still feel he is doing a good job.

Those aged 65-plus are Abbott's biggest supporters, with overall approval of Abbott's handling reaching 60 percent in total.

The majority of those surveyed support Texas making it more difficult for migrants fleeing violence in their home countries to seek asylum in the U.S., including 71 percent of Republicans and 48 percent of Democrats.

Another 48 percent deemed the ongoing tumult at the southern border as a "crisis" while 23 percent consider it a "very serious problem, but not a crisis."

"The results illustrate that while many Texas Democrats share in the widespread Republican concerns about the surge in migration on the U.S.-Mexico border, Democratic attitudes are generally less intense on the subject, and seemingly affected by the persistence and visibility of the problems on the Texas border," pollsters said.