DALLAS - With the Texas primary over in the governor's race, the first major poll came out Thursday sizing up the battle between Gov. Rick Perry and former Houston Mayor Bill White.
It looks like it'll be competitive. The new Rasmussen Reports poll surveyed 500 likely voters Wednesday and reported Perry, the Republican nominee, with a slight lead.
It's the advantage afforded him in state that is still mostly Republican. Eight months out from the general election, Perry leads Democrat Bill White, the former mayor of Houston. However, his lead in the polls isn't much. The Rasmussen Reports poll found 49 percent of likely voters favored Perry, with 43 percent for White. Six percent were undecided, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percent.
Perry told Mark Davis on WBAP radio Thursday he'll remind voters that White and President Barack Obama belong to the same party.
"I don't want somebody that's going to go, 'Yes sir Mr. Obama, because I got a "D" behind my name and I don't want to make you mad,'" he said.
With the poll showing roughly six in 10 Texas voters disapprove of Obama's job performance, it's easy to see why Perry wants to make the connection.
White said he can see that, but for a different reason. He claimed Perry points to Washington to distract from a poor record in Texas.
"I'm just letting people know that we have an alternative so we can move our state forward," he told WFAA. "We need a governor for our future."
The Rasmussen poll showed jobs and the economy remain the top issues for voters.
As the war of words begins, Perry has relied on a line he used in the primary campaign to defend his record.
"It appears what he is going to try to do is tear down Texas and talk about how bad things are in Texas and we just got through with a year of that," he said.
But, White appeared ready to respond.
"Nobody has a monopoly on Texas values and we need to move this state forward," he said.
With Perry and White heading toward the general election, both are viewed favorably by 54 percent of voters. Perry is viewed unfavorably by more voters than White 46 percent to 34.
