Gina Hinojosa defeats Greg Abbott in Texas governor race

Democrat Gina Hinojosa has defeated three-term Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, ending more than three decades of Republican control of the Texas governor’s office and denying Abbott a fourth term. When she takes office in January 2027, she will be Texas’ first Latina governor and its first Democratic governor since Ann Richards left office in 1995.

The Associated Press called the race for Hinojosa, NPR reported, while NBC News and CBS News projected her victory. Hinojosa, a state representative from Austin, will also be the third woman to govern Texas, following Richards and Miriam A. Ferguson, according to CBS News.

Abbott entered the race with a substantial financial advantage. His campaign outspent Hinojosa’s by tens of millions of dollars, NBC News reported. But the contest tightened: An August University of Texas at Austin poll showed Abbott ahead 45% to 40%, with 10% undecided, according to CBS News.

Hinojosa built her campaign around public education and household costs. A former Austin school board president, she has said that efforts to keep her son’s elementary school from closing because of state budget cuts inspired her to seek office, NBC News reported. She opposed the private-school voucher program championed by Abbott, which began in 2026 with $1 billion in tax money for students attending private schools, according to NPR. She also pledged to replace Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath with an educator.

The candidates clashed over data centers. Hinojosa criticized Abbott’s support for their construction and joined other Democrats in calling for a moratorium until lawmakers established additional protections for residents, CBS News reported. Abbott ordered a pause on new state permits while officials audited data centers’ effects on the electrical grid, according to NBC News. In campaign ads, Hinojosa accused him of “doing the bidding of his billionaire donors” and “selling out Texas.”

Abbott promised to lower property taxes and said he had made Texas safer, in part by securing the border, NPR reported. He also attacked Hinojosa over her past support for transgender female athletes and gender-affirming care for minors, calling her “Gender Bender Gina” in campaign ads, according to NBC News.

“They want to run an entire campaign saying that I’m too woke. I plan to spend an entire campaign focused on the fact that working people are too broke,” Hinojosa replied in an ad. “That’s the difference. I’m Gina Hinojosa. My pronouns are mom, Texan and soon-to-be governor.”

Hinojosa, who grew up in the Rio Grande Valley, released bilingual television ads and held town halls in Spanish to connect with Latino voters, NBC News reported. The candidates did not debate; Hinojosa criticized Abbott for not responding to invitations and staged an event outside the Governor’s Mansion in October.

Her victory breaks a Republican hold on the office that began when George W. Bush succeeded Richards in January 1995. Republicans retained it through the administrations of Bush, Rick Perry and Abbott. Hinojosa may still face a Republican-led legislature, NPR reported.