Gina Hinojosa

Gina Hinojosa was born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas and attended public schools in Brownsville.⁠[1][2]

She earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Texas and a law degree from George Washington University.⁠[2][1]

After law school she worked as a civil rights and labor lawyer representing union members, including members of the Communications Workers of America (CWA).⁠[1]

In 2012, after her son’s elementary school faced possible closure, Hinojosa ran for and won a seat on the Austin ISD school board. In 2015 her fellow trustees made her board president.⁠[3][2]

In 2016 Hinojosa won a seven-way Democratic primary outright and was then elected to the Texas House of Representatives from Austin. By 2026 she was serving her fifth term.⁠[1][3]

Hinojosa held her campaign kickoff for governor in her hometown of Brownsville. In October 2025 she said on the campaign trail: “Our fight right now is against the billionaires and the corporations who are driving up prices.”⁠[4]

On March 3, 2026, she defeated eight other candidates in the Democratic primary for governor, including former U.S. Representative Chris Bell of Houston, Angela “Tía Angie” Villescaz of Uvalde and Patricia Abrego, winning the nomination to face Governor Greg Abbott.⁠[4]

At 10:17 p.m. on November 3, 2026, the Associated Press called the Texas governor’s race for Hinojosa over incumbent Governor Greg Abbott. At the time of the call she had about 57% of the counted vote to Abbott’s 41%.⁠[5][6]

She became the first Latina elected governor of Texas, and her win ended decades of Republican control of the governor’s office.⁠[3][5]

In her victory speech she said: “We did it. Everything is bigger, including the shock of this win. We shocked the world tonight,” and: “Here’s what Texas said today, loud and clear: Your government belongs to you.”⁠[3][5]

In the Texas House, Hinojosa led House Democrats on HB 3, a public school finance bill, in the 86th Legislature; on her campaign website she says the bill secured more than $11 billion for public schools in 2019.⁠[1][2]

Her HB 3488 (85th regular session) created public benefit corporations in Texas, and SB 1350 (86th regular session) brought federal funds for indigent health care in Travis County, which her campaign website puts at nearly $1 billion.⁠[1][2]

She also helped create the Texas Climate Plan, organized a quorum break against SB 7 in the 87th regular session, and led opposition to a voucher proposal in the 88th Legislature. She served on the House Public Education, Business and Industry, and Select Educational Opportunity and Enrichment committees, and chairs the Texas House Democratic Campaign Committee.⁠[1]

Hinojosa’s campaign focused on public education and household costs. She has said she opposes private-school vouchers and state takeovers of local school districts, and she pledged to replace Education Commissioner Mike Morath, increase public school funding and overhaul the state’s testing and accountability system.⁠[5]

Personal website: https://ginafortexas.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[2]

X: Public account: https://x.com/GinaHinojosaTX (opens in a new window).⁠[2]

YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: Public channel: https://www.youtube.com/@GinaHinojosaTX (opens in a new window).⁠[2]