Clinton counting on friendlier reception in Texas

Clinton counting on friendlier reception in Texas

After struggling in the opening rounds of the 2016 presidential race, Hillary Clinton is headed to friendlier territory in Texas and other Southern states, where she is counting on strong support among minorities and long-standing regional ties to smooth her path toward the Democratic nomination.

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Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin, said Clinton has reason to be “pretty confident” in Texas but he cites some possible “yellow flags,” including the high degree of enthusiasm among young Sanders voters and the perception that Clinton’s team is off to a late start in Texas. Still, unlike New Hampshire and Iowa, Texas has major urban areas with large populations of minority voters, he said, “and those have been areas of strength for Secretary Clinton.”

Clinton recently snared a crucial endorsement from the political arm of the Congressional Black Caucus and counts Reps. Marc Veasey of Fort Worth and Sheila Jackson Lee of Houston among her leading African-American supporters in Texas.