Texas governor’s race 2026: Abbott and Hinojosa on the issues
Incumbent Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is running for his fourth term in office in a close race against State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin.
Both native Texans, their political history, philosophy and platforms are vastly different.
Abbott began his career as an attorney, was elected and served as a trial court judge in Harris County for three years where he was awarded “Trial Judge of the Year.” In 1996, he was appointed to the Texas Supreme Court and was twice elected to the court, receiving 84% and 60% of the vote.
In 2002, he was elected as Texas’ 50th attorney general with 57% of the vote. He was twice reelected, receiving more than 60% of the vote each time. In 2014, he was first elected governor, winning reelection in 2018 and 2022 by large margins.
If Abbott is reelected to his fourth term and serves it tp its entirety, he will be the longest-serving governor in Texas history. There are no term limits for governor in Texas.
Abbott describes his political philosophy in his book, Broken but Unbowed. As attorney general and governor, he has advocated for safeguarding constitutional rights, including against federal government overreach. For years, he fought and won legal battles against the Obama and Biden administrations.
Since he’s been in office, Abbott has won numerous awards, including being named one of the top political leaders in the world by TIME Magazine. He’s led the state to break business, job creation and economic records every year, The Center Square reported. Under Abbott, more than 2.5 million jobs have been created, Texas now has the most Fortune 500 companies in the U.S. and its $2.9 trillion GDP is the eighth largest in the world.
Hinojosa’s political career began when she was elected to her local school board about 10 years ago. She was elected to the Texas House in 2018. Within one year, the Texas Tribune ranked her as the most liberal member of the Texas House.
She says she “began her career as an advocate for families and workers as a civil rights and union lawyer” representing “hard working Texans” and “has a long history of holding corrupt politicians accountable.”
On the issue of the economy, Abbott has proposed plans to help reduce housing, insurance, electricity, education and other costs that increased during the Biden and Trump administrations. Hinojosa has proposed giving all Texans a $1,500 check.
When it comes to property taxes, Abbott has proposed a five-point property tax reduction plan. Hinojosa doesn’t have one.
Hinojosa has voted 40 times to increase property taxes, a claim she denies, despite her voting record, The Center Square reported.
The issue of public education has been central to Hinojosa’s campaign. She advocates for fully funding public schools and opposes the state taking over failing schools, which is required by law. She blames Abbott for local school districts making cuts. The districts have said they are making the cuts due to declining enrollment, administrative bloat, budget shortfalls resulting from federal COVID-era funds drying up while also not cutting spending, and corruption that has cost taxpayers millions.
Abbott’s platform includes a range of initiatives including creating new academies, reducing screentime, implementing stronger protections against crimes against children, making schools more efficient, among others. He also signed bills into law allocating a record $9 billion to fund public schools, give historic teacher raises and retirement increases.
Abbott also championed Texas’ new Education Savings Accounts program, which Hinojosa refers to as a “voucher scam.”
Abbott has also championed parental rights initiatives, signing the Parental Bill of Rights into law, which Hinojosa voted against. In the last legislative session, she also voted for parents to be prosecuted for child abuse if they don’t affirm their child’s gender choice.
Abbott also signed the most consequential prolife legislation into law, the Heartbeat Act, which Hinojosa voted against. He also signed bills advancing funding to help low-income families and new mothers and a bill to ban local governments from financially or logistically supporting abortions. “Texas has passed more pro-life legislation than any state in the United States,” he maintains.
Abbott also signed bills into law banning boys who identify as female in girls’ sports, men in women’s bathrooms and locker rooms, gender surgery on minors and the Women’s Bill of Rights, which states there are only two sexes: male and female.
In 2023, Hinojosa voted for taxpayer money funding sex-change surgeries for children and voted for men who identify as female competing in women’s sports. In 2021, she voted for boys competing in girls’ sports. In 2025, she voted against the Women’s Bill of Rights and voted for men and women sharing the same bathroom.
Not all Texas Democrats, including judges and state representatives, agree with her, citing abortion and gender issues as key reasons why they left the Democratic Party.
Abbott has also advanced some of the most pro-law enforcement policies in state history, including penalizing local governments that vote to defund their police departments. He also implemented a border security operation during the Biden administration’s border crisis, The Center Square reported. Hinojosa has opposed Texas’ border security measures even as Hispanic Texans in border communities supported it, including in the Rio Grande Valley, where she is from.
Abbott has also called for creating a new independent prosecutor’s office and holding what he characterizes as “rogue” district attorneys accountable. In 2023, Hinojosa voted against legislation to hold elected prosecutors accountable. In 2025, she voted against bail reform legislation. Last November, Texas voters overwhelmingly passed a constitutional amendment expanding bail reform.
On the issue of data centers, Abbott has issued a moratorium on data center development and multiple directives. Hinojosa blames Abbott for data center expansion, stating she opposes it unless data centers are built by union employees, The Center Square reported.
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