Gina Hinojosa defeated Greg Abbott in Texas’ November 3 election, according to the Associated Press, and will become the state’s first Latina governor. She is the first Democrat elected governor since Ann Richards in 1990.
Her victory accompanied gains by Latino Democrats across South and West Texas. Bobby Pulido and Katy Padilla Stout flipped Republican-held congressional seats; Henry Cuellar, Vicente Gonzalez and Johnny Garcia kept seats in Democratic hands.
What was Hinojosa’s margin of victory?
Hinojosa led Abbott by 7.12 percentage points in Decision Desk HQ’s November 4 update at 9:11 a.m. Central. The count showed 5,230,967 votes (52.78%) for Hinojosa and 4,525,039 (45.66%) for Abbott, with more than 95% reported. These are reported returns, not certified final totals.
Who is Gina Hinojosa?
A civil rights and labor lawyer, Hinojosa previously led Austin’s school board and represents central Austin in the Texas House. Her legislative biography traces her public service to a campaign to save her son’s school from closure. She grew up in the Rio Grande Valley and attended Brownsville public schools, according to her campaign biography.
How did Gina Hinojosa beat Greg Abbott?
Public schools, living costs and data centers were central to her challenge. The Houston Chronicle’s Benjamin Wermund reported that Hinojosa opposed Abbott’s private-school voucher program and drew on resistance to data-center development in Republican rural communities. One campaign ad featured football coach Tim Buchanan, who said he had voted for Abbott three times.
The Texas Tribune reported that she overcame a spending disadvantage of more than four to one. Those accounts document her campaign’s approach; determining which issues changed the most votes will require further voter analysis.
Did Latino voters help Hinojosa win?
Polling before the election showed Hinojosa ahead among likely Latino voters. A University of Houston survey released October 23 put her at 53 percent to Abbott’s 43 percent. It surveyed 500 Latino Texans October 10–14, with a margin of error of ±4.18 percentage points.
The same survey showed substantial differences within that electorate: urban Latino voters favored Hinojosa, while rural Latino voters favored Abbott. These are pre-election preferences. They cannot establish Hinojosa’s final Latino vote share or how much Latino turnout contributed to her winning margin.
Which other Latino candidates won in Texas in 2026?
Other Latino Democratic winners in congressional races included:
- Bobby Pulido — U.S. House, District 15: The Tejano singer defeated Republican incumbent Monica De La Cruz, flipping the seat.
- Katy Padilla Stout — U.S. House, District 23: The attorney and former teacher defeated Republican Brandon Herrera, flipping the seat.
- Henry Cuellar — U.S. House, District 28: The Laredo incumbent won reelection against Republican Tano Tijerina.
- Vicente Gonzalez — U.S. House, District 34: The McAllen incumbent defeated Republican Eric Flores, retaining his seat.
- Johnny Garcia — U.S. House, District 35: The Bexar County sheriff’s deputy defeated Republican Carlos De La Cruz, holding a district Republicans had redrawn to favor their party.
Pulido and Padilla Stout flipped Republican-held seats. Cuellar, Gonzalez and Garcia kept seats in Democratic hands. That distinction matters when measuring how much political control changed.
What does Hinojosa want to change as governor?
Hinojosa proposed a one-time $1,500 payment from the state’s emergency savings, the Associated Press reported. She also campaigned on public-school funding and lower household costs. The payment remains a proposal; her election does not authorize it.
Does Hinojosa’s victory mean Texas has turned blue?
Democrats won the governorship and a U.S. Senate seat, with James Talarico defeating Ken Paxton. Congressional results also show gains. These victories demonstrate that Democrats can win major Texas races in this election. Establishing a durable partisan shift will take more elections and a closer examination of turnout, persuasion and voters who switched parties.
Featured image: Gina Hinojosa at the LBJ Presidential Library’s Future Forum, February 16, 2017. Archive photo: Jay Godwin / LBJ Library. Public domain.
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