AUSTIN — State Rep. Gina Hinojosa is trying to do what no Texas Democrat has done since 1990: win the governor’s office.
And she’s doing it as an angry mom.
Frustration over public education funding and the imminent closure of her son’s school pulled her into school-board politics 14 years ago. Now, as the Democratic frontrunner in an eight-candidate primary Tuesday, her fury is fixed on Gov. Greg Abbott, his private school vouchers program and the billionaires she blames for squeezing Texas families.
On a recent Sunday afternoon at a South Austin coffee shop, Hinojosa downed a bright orange vitamin C drink, her only sustenance after a quick Mexican breakfast between stops hours earlier.
Her voice was hoarse, her schedule packed.
“The people are excited and determined, so I just feed off the energy,” she said, before heading out to cast an early vote.
Political Points
State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a democrat candidate for governor, drinks an immunity shot at Proud Mary Coffee bar in Austin, Sunday, Feb., 22, 2026. (Stephen Spillman)
Stephen Spillman / Special Contributor
At 52, the former school board president has built her campaign around what she calls “Abbott’s corruption tax,” saying wealthy donors and national Republicans exert “gross” control over Texas leaders, pushing up costs for utilities, housing and health care, and straining schools.
Hinojosa backs higher teacher pay, expanded health care access, a minimum wage increase, abortion rights and lower homeowner property taxes with benefits for renters.
“The spectrum of liberal versus conservative is irrelevant in this election,” she said. “This is a populist agenda. It’s all of us against the billionaires who are taking more and more of our money because of Greg Abbott’s corruption.”
State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a democrat candidate for governor, places a campaign sign outside a polling station in Austin, Sunday, Feb., 22, 2026. (Stephen Spillman)
Stephen Spillman / Special Contributor
Abbott’s campaign has rejected Hinojosa’s accusations of big money influence, citing his record over three terms on border security, public safety and tax relief.
The Republican holds a clear advantage, armed with tens of millions in campaign cash, the backing of President Donald Trump and a record on crime, tax relief, immigration enforcement, limits on diversity programs and private school vouchers.
At left, State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a democrat candidate for governor, walks to cast her early ballot with husband John Donisi in Austin, Sunday, Feb., 22, 2026. (Stephen Spillman)
Stephen Spillman / Special Contributor
Signs of traction
Crisscrossing the state, the self-proclaimed “mad mom” said she feels the momentum building.
Abbott’s job approval dipped below 50% in a recent poll of voters, as did Trump’s.
This week, early vote turnout totals showed a surge in Democratic participation, well past previous primary cycles, even outpacing Republicans in North Texas and other vote-rich areas.
Hinojosa touts more than 100 endorsements, including U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett and state Rep. James Talarico, the party’s Senate contenders in the state’s most headline-grabbing primary.
State Representative Gina Hinojosa, right, hugs Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett during a Letter Carriers Rally in San Antonio, Texas on Sunday, February 22, 2025.
Cody Duty / Special Contributor
A Democratic victory in a special state Senate election in Tarrant County in January, long a Republican stronghold, gave activists what Hinojosa called a “shot in the arm.”
“Democrats finally believe again,” she said.
Optimism aside, Hinojosa’s challenges are real.
Critics say her progressive record may not play well with more moderate voters, particularly on social issues in parts of South Texas. She also must build name recognition, with a fraction of the resources available to her opponent.
The daughter of a former Texas Democratic Party chairman who led the party through steep losses, Hinojosa said she knows it will take more than excitement to defeat a well-funded Republican in a state dominated by conservatives.
State Representative Gina Hinojosa speaks during a Texas Organizing Project event at the Social Spot in San Antonio, Texas on Sunday, February 22, 2025.
Cody Duty / Special Contributor
In recent weeks, she has stepped up her schedule and expanded her team, adding a security detail and nearly a dozen full-time staffers.
She joined Crockett and Talarico and other candidates on the campaign trail and met with critical Democratic voting blocs: city dwellers, laborers, Black voters, rural Texans and residents along the border.
Her fundraising tripled — $950,000 in donations in the past 30 days. She doubled her spending to $673,000 and had $617,000 in cash on hand.
By comparison, Abbott raised more than $2 million over that same period and spent more than $10 million.
Tommy Kubitschek, Communications Director, for Gina Hinojosa’s campaign for Texas Governor, shoots a photo of her with attendees at a Letter Carriers Rally in San Antonio, Texas on Sunday, February 22, 2025.
Cody Duty / Special Contributor
On the trail
Hinojosa has spent her Sundays at Black churches, highlighting her successful fight to block a GOP-led effort to make it illegal to vote on Sunday mornings, a popular tradition for the churches, she said.
One recent weekend, she moved from a union letter carrier demonstration to a rally in San Antonio with Crockett. Next up: she heads to the Rio Grande Valley with Talarico before returning to her hometown of Brownsville in full charro regalia for the annual Charro Days fiesta.
At left, State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a democrat candidate for governor, takes a photo with Angelina Castillo and Carlos Roque outside a polling station in Austin, Sunday, Feb., 22, 2026. (Stephen Spillman)
Stephen Spillman / Special Contributor
Hinojosa said Democrats are leaning in.
Among her supporters, Angelina Castillo and Carlos Roque, both 34, found themselves voting alongside the candidate Sunday at the South Austin Recreation Center.
The pair waited until Hinojosa hit the sidewalk outside the property, shook her hand and then asked for selfies. She happily obliged.
Castillo, a hospital pharmacist, said she was encouraged by the Democratic state Senate win in Tarrant County and by Hinojosa’s campaign.
“Just seeing what’s possible is so powerful,” she said.