State Rep. Gina Hinojosa on Wednesday launched a Democratic campaign for governor, promising to tackle the billionaire class and Gov. Greg Abbott on behalf of Texas families.
“Our fight right now is against the billionaires and the corporations who are driving up prices, closing our neighborhood schools and cheating Texans out of basic health care,” Hinojosa said in a video announcing her campaign. “That’s who Greg Abbott works for. I’m running for governor to work for you.”
Texas’ 2026 election includes races for prominent statewide elective offices. As candidates declare their intent to run, voters can begin gathering information to inform their choices next year.
In her video Hinojosa, D-Austin, criticized Abbott for pushing and signing into law a bill that allows students to use public money to attend private schools. It was the centerpiece of Abbott’s 2025 legislative agenda.
Hinojosa, 51, was one of the leading voices against Abbott’s voucher plan.
“Abbott devastated our schools when he passed his voucher scam and he took $6 million from an out-of-state billionaire dead set on defunding public education,” Hinojosa said. “So long as we have a governor who can be bought, we won’t have the Texas that we deserve.”
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State Representative of Texas Gina Hinojosa (center) and guest Elizabeth Myers (right) stand and applaud former Texas State Senator Wendy Davis who was speaking to those attending the Lady Bird Breakfast fundraiser at the 2022 Texas Democratic Convention at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, July 16, 2022.
Tom Fox / Staff Photographer
Throughout the video Hinojosa repeated the Spanish phrase “No te dejes,” which she used to reinforce the need for Texans to “fight back” against Abbott.
“I’m fighting back,” she said. “I’m running to take on the corruption and take back our state.”
Abbott campaign manager Kim Snyder released a statement Wednesday calling Hinojosa “wrong for Texas.”
“Gina Hinojosa has proven that she is out of step with Texans,” Snyder said. “She sides with the defund-the-police movement, supports men competing in women’s sports, backs harmful child modification procedures, embraces reckless open border policies, and opposes critical bail reform that keeps dangerous criminals behind bars. Time and again, Gina Hinojosa chooses woke, extreme ideologies over the safety and security of Texas families.”
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In order to challenge Abbott, Hinojosa must win the Democratic primary for governor. Candidates in that contest include Houston businessman Andrew White, the son of former Gov. Mark White who ran for governor in 2018. The field also includes Bobby Cole, a rancher and retired firefighter, and Bay City Council member Benjamin Flores.
Representative Gina Hinojosa speaks with democratic female members of the Texas House of Representatives as they hold a press conference on the third day of the 86th Texas legislature on Thursday, January 10, 2019 at the Texas state Capitol, in Austin, Texas. (Ashley Landis/The Dallas Morning News)
Ashley Landis / Staff Photographer
“I like Gina. She’s a progressive who represents her district well. But this is a statewide race,” White said in a statement. “Democrats need a candidate who will bring together progressives, moderates, and independents to beat Greg Abbott. I’ve been an entrepreneur for 30 years — Greg’s not ready for me.”
Hinojosa is a former Austin ISD board president. She has served in the Texas House since 2017. She is the daughter of Gilberto Hinojosa, the former Texas Democratic Party Chairman who also served as Cameron County judge.
She has more than100 endorsements, according to her release statement. The list includes former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, who is running for Senate, and current U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas.
“She has led successful fights to keep schools open, defend teachers, and deliver historic investments in public education — while Abbott has spent years funneling taxpayer dollars into his donor network and pushing a voucher scam that defunds classrooms across the state,” Allred said in a statement.”