Larry Sabato, director of University of Virgina’s Center for Politics, thinks that the PPP poll “reflects Perry’s controversial nature.” “He is not the most popular figure there. He’s got a lot of enemies. He went as low as 39 percent in his 2006 reelection,” Sabato observes.

Still, Sabato says he “laughed” at the PPP poll’s results. He remarks, “I don’t care how much money they spend. President Obama isn’t carrying Texas.”

Joshua Trevino, vice president of communications at the free-market, non-partisan Texas Public Policy Foundation, points out that Perry is no stranger to defying the odds in competitive races. “With Governor Perry in particular, you are looking at a guy who has fought and won many elections starting from a pretty unfavorable position — most famously, the last gubernatorial election,” he says.