Last month the race briefly appeared to look competitive, with Democratic candidate Beto O’Rourke moving within two points of Abbott according to one poll.
However, more recent polling suggested Abbott has a strong lead, with the latest analysis from election website FiveThirtyEight giving the incumbent a 98 percent chance of victory.
The most recent poll, conducted between November 2 and 5 by CWS Research, gave Abbott an 11-point lead. Based on a survey of 786 registered voters it put the Republican on 53 percent, versus 42 percent for O’Rourke.
A YouGov poll of 1,200 registered voters, which took place between October 19 and 26, gave Abbott an even bigger 13-point lead. It also placed the GOP candidate on 53 percent, versus just 40 percent for O’Rourke.
Abbott’s strong position comes despite O’Rourke out fundraising him during the most recent spell for which data has been published.
The Texas Tribune reports O’Rourke raised $10.5 million between September 30 and October 29, versus $8.8 million for the Republican Governor.
On Monday, both Abbott and O’Rourke made their final pitches to the public before election day.
Abbott tweeted: “Election Day is TOMORROW. As your Governor, I will continue securing the border, creating jobs, protecting our energy industry and fully funding law enforcement.”
By contrast, O’Rourke tweeted: “8 years of Greg Abbott is more than enough.”
The Democrat added a vote for him is a vote to “keep kids safe, expand Medicaid, raise the minimum wage, fully found our public schools, restore reproductive freedom, lower property taxes, increase teacher pay, legalize marijuana, and fix the grid.”
Ahead of the election ‘No It Couldn’t,’ a group advocating stricter gun control, spent six figures on an ad linking Abbott position on guns rights with May’s Uvalde school shooting which left 21 dead.
Speaking to Newsweek a spokesperson for the group said: “We want people to remember what happened and maybe this could bring some energy to voters.”
On Monday Donald Trump said he would be making a “very big announcement” on November 15, from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, sparking speculation he will announce he is running for the presidency again in 2024.
Speaking at an election rally in Dayton, Ohio, he said: “This is the year we’re going to take back the House. We’re going to take back the Senate and we’re going to take back America.
“And in 2024, most importantly, we are going to take back our magnificent White House.”
Both Greg Abbott and Beto O’Rourke have been contacted for comment.
