The Scripps Howard Data Center questioned by telephone 1,000 randomly selected Texas residents between Oct. 9 and Oct. 31. The margin of error for the sample was plus or minus 3 percentage points. Lawmakers gather in Austin for 140 days every other year and often focus on two or three big issues, such as education or taxes, because of the relatively short time frame in which to pass legislation. Allan Saxe, a political scientist at the University of Texas at Arlington, said legislative priorities this year probably will include improving Medicaid, helping teachers get health insurance, building more prisons and increasing the number of Texans who go to college. Both Mr. Gallegos and Mr. Grusendorf said they were not surprised that more Texans cited education as the most important issue.
Education is all-encompassing.
It tells you about where the future of the state and nation are going. They hit everybody at every level and every strata. They are something everybody can relate to and is worried about. What Texans are not concerned about, apparently, is learning the names of their state senators and representatives. Ninety-one percent of those surveyed could not name their state senator and 88 percent could not name their state representative.