Gina Hinojosa

Gina Hinojosa
Hinojosa in 2017
Member of the Texas House of Representatives
from the 49th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 10, 2017
Preceded byElliott Naishtat
Personal details
BornRegina Inez Hinojosa
(1973-12-08) December 8, 1973
McAllen, Texas, U.S.
PartyDemocratic
SpouseJohn Donisi
Children2
Parent
Education
Signature
WebsiteCampaign website

Regina Inez Hinojosa (born December 8, 1973)[1] is an American lawyer and politician who is a member of the Texas House of Representatives, representing the 49th district. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Hinojosa was sworn into the Texas House on January 10, 2017, after winning the November 2016 general election. She succeeded Democrat Elliott Naishtat, who did not run for re-election.[2][3]

Before becoming a state legislator, Hinojosa worked for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and for the law firm of Kator, Parks & Weiser. In 2005, she was part of the legal team that sued U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. She was also a member of the Austin Independent School District's school board and has worked part-time for Catholic Charities USA, Texas Rural Legal Aid, and the Equal Justice Center.[4]

On October 15, 2025, Hinojosa announced her candidacy for governor in the 2026 Texas gubernatorial election.[5] Hinojosa won the Democratic primary on March 3, 2026, and will compete against incumbent Republican governor Greg Abbott.[5][6]

Early life, education, and career

Hinojosa speaking at the Texas Democratic Party's 2014 convention.

Hinojosa is from the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas. She was born in McAllen and is the daughter of politician Gilberto Hinojosa. She grew up in Brownsville and spent summers with her grandparents in Mission. After graduating from Homer Hanna High School in 1992, she attended the University of Texas at Austin as a Plan II Honors/Government major, graduating with her Bachelor of Arts in 1996. From there she earned her Juris Doctor degree from George Washington University Law School in 1999.[7] She spent one semester at the University of Texas School of Law where she met her husband.[8]

Hinojosa started her career representing union members as a civil rights lawyer. In 2012, facing Austin Independent School District's closing of schools, including her son's school, Pease Elementary, she joined the Austin ISD school board. She served four years until 2016, when she ran for Texas's 49th House of Representatives district, where she served five terms.[7][9]

Texas House of Representatives

2017

In the 85th Texas Legislature, Hinojosa proposed directing $3 million to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to help trafficking victims receive necessary services.[10] The proposal passed the House 113 to 32, but was stripped from the budget during negotiations with the Senate.[11]

2019

At an organizing campaign for the Healthy Texas Act of 2019, Hinojosa pledged to introduce legislation to provide every Texas resident with comprehensive healthcare services.[12] The bill was considered in committee, but did not move forward.[13] During the 86th Texas Legislature, Hinojosa also authored HB 1307, which established a system allowing individuals impacted by disasters to apply for assistance. The bill was signed into law.[14]

2021

During the 87th Texas Legislature, Hinojosa filed House Bill 73, which would have prohibited the use of the gay/trans panic defense. Under the panic defense, criminal penalties for assault and murder can be lessened or eliminated if the perpetrator claims they lost control and acted violently in response to the victim's sexual orientation or gender identity. The bill was rejected by the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence.[15]

In July 2021, Democratic members of the Texas House, including Hinojosa, left the state in an effort to prevent the passage of voting restriction legislation, which would ban drive-thru and 24-hour voting, prohibit local election officials from distributing unrequested mail-in ballot applications, and grant partisan poll watchers unrestricted movement at voting sites, among other changes.[16][17] Although the bill eventually passed, provisions that would have made it easier for judges to overturn election results and prohibited early morning voting on Sundays (potentially impeding Black churches' post-service voting tradition) were eliminated.[18]

2023

During the 88th Texas Legislature, Hinojosa authored the Fully Fund Our Future Act. The bill would have invested 40 billion dollars into the Texas public school system, providing teachers with a $15,000 raise and school support staff with a $5,500 raise, increasing per-student funding from $6,160 to $8,947, and allocating an additional $2 billion for special education services.[19][20] However, Texas Governor Greg Abbott stated that he would not permit increasing public education funding or providing teacher pay raises unless school voucher legislation passed.[21] As a result, public school districts did not receive additional state funding in 2023.[22]

2025

In February 2025, Hinojosa posted a link to an interactive website where users could learn how much money local school districts would lose as a result of school voucher legislation. Governor Abbott, who had designated the passage of school vouchers as his first priority of the session, stated that Democrats either don't understand the legislation "or they lie about it." Hinojosa responded, "Call me a liar to my face," in a post accompanied by a video offering to educate the governor on school finance.[23]

In August 2025, Hinojosa was one of the 51 Democratic members of the Texas House who left the state to participate in the quorum bust in order to delay the passage of new congressional maps.[24] While she was absent from the state, Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit to attempt to remove Hinojosa, along with a dozen other representatives, from office by declaring their seats vacant.[25] The members ultimately returned to the state before the Texas Supreme Court could issue a ruling,[26] and the maps passed through the legislature, triggering a nationwide cycle of redistricting.[27][28] In May 2026, the Texas Supreme Court ruled that it did not have jurisdiction in the legislative dispute and dismissed the case against the absent members.[29]

Political positions

Data centers

Hinojosa has called for a moratorium on the construction of data centers in Texas.[30] She said that data centers "are owned by the richest men in the world. We're all footing the bill. There are no rules."[31]

Taxation

Hinojosa supports the suspension of the Texas state gas tax as a way to ease rising fuel prices caused by the 2026 Iran war.[32] As governor, Hinojosa proposed sending a $1,500 rebate check to every Texas household from the state's Economic Stabilization Fund which she called a "corruption tax refund".[33]

2026 gubernatorial campaign

On October 15, 2025, Hinojosa announced her candidacy for governor in the 2026 election.[5] Her opponents in the Democratic primary included former Representative and 2006 gubernatorial nominee Chris Bell. On March 3, 2026, she won the primary with 59.9 percent of the vote.[34] She will face Greg Abbott in November.

Electoral history

2016 Texas House of Representatives 49th district election[35][36]
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Gina Hinojosa 17,485 56.96
Democratic Heather Way 5,752 18.74
Democratic Huey Rey Fischer 4,322 14.08
Democratic Blake Rocap 985 3.21
Democratic other candidates 2,153 7.01
Total votes 30,697 100.0
General election
Democratic Gina Hinojosa 68,398 84.41
Libertarian Rick Perkins 12,631 15.59
Total votes 81,029 100.0
Democratic hold
2018 Texas House of Representatives 49th district election[37]
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 24,126 100.0
General election
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 76,851 83.0
Republican Kyle Austin 15,736 17.0
Total votes 92,587 100.0
Democratic hold
2020 Texas House of Representatives 49th district election[38]
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 43,031 100.0
Total votes 43,031 100.0
General election
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 80,258 78.85
Republican Charles Allan Meyer 18,277 17.96
Libertarian Kenneth M. Moore 3,248 3.19
Total votes 101,783 100.0
Democratic hold
2022 Texas House of Representatives 49th district election[39]
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 21,566 100.0
Total votes 21,566 100.0
General election
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 68,786 83.44
Republican Katherine Griffin 11,882 14.41
Libertarian J. David Roberson 1,768 2.14
Total votes 82,436 100.0
Democratic hold
2024 Texas House of Representatives 49th district election
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 17,720 100.0
Total votes 17,720 100.0
General election
Democratic Gina Hinojosa (incumbent) 80,498 100.0
Total votes 80,498 100.0
Democratic hold
2026 Texas gubernatorial Democratic primary (99% reporting)
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Gina Hinojosa 1,285,429 58.5
Democratic Chris Bell 215,835 9.8
Democratic Angela "Tia Angie" Villescaz 150,339 6.8
Democratic Patricia Abrego 128,202 5.8
Democratic Andrew White (withdrawn) 116,908 5.3
Democratic Bobby Cole 112,335 5.1
Democratic Jose Navarro Balbuena 65,603 3.0
Democratic Carlton W. Hart 63,108 2.9
Democratic Zach Vance 58,577 2.7
Total votes 2,196,336 100.00

References

  1. ↑ "Rep. Gina Hinojosa". Texas State Directory Online. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  2. ↑ Eaton, Tim (March 2, 2016). "Gina Hinojosa declares victory for House District 49". Austin American-Statesman. Archived from the original on January 16, 2017. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  3. ↑ Lopez, Ashley (January 2, 2017). "Gina Hinojosa Prepares to Tackle School Funding, Local Control in Her First Legislative Session". KUT. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  4. ↑ Whittaker, Richard (February 5, 2016). "Meet the Candidate: Gina Hinojosa". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 Guo, Kayla (October 15, 2025). "Texas Rep. Gina Hinojosa joins Democratic race to challenge Gov. Greg Abbott". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved October 15, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Texas Governor Primary Results 2026". NBC News. March 3, 2026. Retrieved March 4, 2026.
  7. 1 2 Jimenez, Francisco E. (October 24, 2025). "Democrat cites Valley roots in bid to challenge Republican Gov. Greg Abbott". myRGV.com. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  8. ↑ Hinojosa, Gina (September 1, 2022). "Opening Keynote". Texas Hispanic Journal of Law & Policy. 28 (1): 103. ISSN 1547-4887 – via EBSCOhost.
  9. ↑ "Representative Gina Hinojosa" (PDF). Nacogdoches County Chamber of Commerce. 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  10. ↑ Walters, Edgar (April 10, 2017). "House lawmakers take a stab at funding for trafficking victims". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  11. ↑ Walters, Edgar (May 25, 2017). "Behind closed doors, Texas lawmakers strip funding for sex trafficking victims". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  12. ↑ King, Michael (December 6, 2018). "Dems Call for Health Care for All Texans". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  13. ↑ "HB 4127". Texas Legislature Online. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  14. ↑ "HB 1307".
  15. ↑ Brown, Sadie (June 18, 2021). "'The Great State of Hate': Texas Declines to Ban 'Gay/Trans Panic' Defense". Texas Observer. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  16. ↑ DeBenedetto, Paul (July 12, 2021). "Texas Democrats Leave The State In An Effort To Block GOP Voting Restrictions". NPR. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  17. ↑ Kroll, Andy (July 13, 2021). "A Texas Democrat Explains Why She's Fled the State — and What's Next for Voting Rights". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  18. ↑ Ura, Alexa (September 7, 2021). "Gov. Greg Abbott signs Texas voting bill into law, overcoming Democratic quorum breaks". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  19. ↑ Basco, Isabella (October 19, 2023). "Texas Democrats look to pump $40 billion into public school system with school finance bill". KVUE.
  20. ↑ "HB 177".
  21. ↑ Pandey, Maia (October 12, 2023). "Gov. Greg Abbott says he'll add teacher pay to the special session — but only if lawmakers pass school voucher bill".
  22. ↑ Svitek, Patrick; Despart, Zach; Lopez, Brian (December 22, 2023). "How Gov. Greg Abbott lost a yearlong fight to create school vouchers". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  23. ↑ Moritz, John (February 13, 2025). "'Call me a liar to my face': Texas Gov. Abbott, Rep. Hinojosa spar over school vouchers". Austin-American Statesman. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  24. ↑ McCracken, Ford; McKim, Dylan; Neas, Cora (August 5, 2025). "Here are the Texas House Democrats who broke quorum". The Hill.
  25. ↑ Klibanoff, Eleanor (August 8, 2025). "Ken Paxton asks Texas Supreme Court to expel 13 House Democrats over redistricting standoff". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
  26. ↑ Gainey, Blaise (August 18, 2025). "Texas House Democrats return to Capitol after two-week walkout, will have DPS escorts". KUT Radio, Austin's NPR Station. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
  27. ↑ Schneider, Andrew (August 23, 2025). "Texas passes midterm redistricting sought by Trump as California plans to counter". NPR. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
  28. ↑ "What's next in the national redistricting fight after California approved a new U.S. House map". PBS News. November 5, 2025. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
  29. ↑ Klibanoff, Eleanor; Guo, Kayla (May 15, 2026). "Democrat Gene Wu can keep House seat, Texas Supreme Court rules". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved June 1, 2026.
  30. ↑ Wermund, Benjamin (July 23, 2026). "Gina Hinojosa calls on Greg Abbott to halt data center construction". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  31. ↑ Levy, Marc (July 23, 2026). "Democrats seize on AI data center backlash that's dividing rural Republicans in places like Texas". Associated Press. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  32. ↑ Schwager, Adam (April 24, 2026). "How Texas Gubernatorial candidates plans to cut Texans' taxes". KXAN. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  33. ↑ Guo, Kayla (July 7, 2026). "Gina Hinojosa proposes sending every Texas household $1,500 in her bid to oust Greg Abbott". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  34. ↑ Gainey, Blaise; Newsroom, Texas (March 3, 2026). "Texas Rep. Gina Hinojosa wins Democratic nomination, will face Gov. Greg Abbott in November". Houston Public Media. Retrieved March 7, 2026. {{cite web}}: |last2= has generic name (help)
  35. ↑ "Race Summary Report 2016 General Election". Office of the Secretary of State. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  36. ↑ "Race Summary Report 2016 Democratic Primary Election". Office of the Secretary of State. Retrieved October 15, 2025.
  37. ↑ "Race Summary Report 2018 General Election". elections.sos.state.tx.us. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  38. ↑ "November 3rd 2020 Texas Election Results". Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  39. ↑ "November 8th 2022 Texas Election Results". Retrieved March 13, 2023.
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