After Ronald Reagan as president and Arnold Schwarzenegger as governor of California, Matthew McConaughey could well join the club of American actors reconverted into politics. A poll published on April 19 by the
Dallas Morning News
and conducted among 1,126 voters measures how he could win in the election next year to the head of one of the most important states in the country. The victory indeed seems within reach for the star of
Interstellar,
born in Uvalde in Texas, with 46% of the voting intentions. A score much higher than that of Greg Abbott, the current Republican governor, candidate for a new mandate: he is credited with only 33% of the voting intentions.
The study comes to shake a little more a state which was among the most observed during the last presidential campaign. Long the land of the Democrats, Texas has become a stronghold of the Republicans since 1995 and the election to governorate of George W. Bush. The state has never switched back since. The Democrats had bet some hopes during the presidential election; but if Donald Trump achieved in 2020 the worst score for a Republican since Bob Dole in 1996, the state has remained committed to the GOP. Until this day.
Matthew McConaughey has yet to formalize his candidacy, although he has shown his interest in politics on several occasions. In March, in the podcast
The Balanced Voice
, he declared "
seriously considering"
the post of governor. “
I wonder about my role as a leader. Because I really think I have things to teach and to share,
”he explained. In
Jimmy Fallon's
Tonight Show
, the actor once again confirmed thinking about it: “
Is this something I'm considering? Absolutely. And it's already an honor to be able to reflect on this. But I haven't gone further than that for the moment ”.
The
Dallas Morning New
observes that while two-thirds of Democratic voters say they are ready to vote for the actor, 51% of them are calling for a "progressive candidate." However, Matthew McConaughey does not seem tempted by a Democratic nomination - a party he has criticized in the past - nor does he intend to embody a left alternative. He also presents himself as a moderate. A profile that is ultimately very dangerous for Republicans and for Greg Abbott, whose management of the health crisis and then of the winter storm in February is very strongly criticized. According to the poll, just 56% of Republican voters today vote in favor of a new term for Greg Abbott and 29% even declare their intention to vote for Matthew McConaughey.
