Democrat Gina Hinojosa leads Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in early returns Tuesday in the Texas governor's race, as counties across the state continue tabulating votes.
As of 9:25 p.m., Hinojosa had about 56% of the reported vote to Abbott's nearly 43%, according to results from The Associated Press. The race remains uncalled, with about 58% of the estimated vote counted.
Loading...
David Crockett, a political science professor at Trinity University, says the location of uncounted votes matters when assessing either candidate's lead.
Austin Bussing, an assistant professor of political science at Trinity University, says early voters may differ from Election Day voters in their political preferences and their motivation to turn out. He cautions against assuming the first returns represent all voters.
Abbott seeks a fourth term. Hinojosa is an Austin state representative and former Austin school board president who campaigns on public education and household costs.
Hinojosa opposes private-school vouchers and state takeovers of local school districts. She pledges to replace Education Commissioner Mike Morath with an educator and direct more resources toward public schools. Her education platform also calls for changes to the state's testing and accountability system.
Abbott champions the school voucher program created in 2025, which allows families to use public money for private education expenses. He says the program gives parents more options for their children's education. The voucher law caps spending at $1 billion for the 2026-27 state budget period.
He signed an $8.5 billion public-school funding package in 2025, including $4.2 billion for teacher and school staff raises, plus money for special education, early learning and school safety.
Both candidates propose ways to reduce household expenses. Abbott calls for letting voters decide whether toeliminate school district property taxes for homeowners through a constitutional amendment. He also proposes tighter limits on appraisal increases. School district property taxes help fund public schools, so eliminating them would require replacing that revenue.
Hinojosa proposes reducing corporate subsidies to help pay for property tax cuts. She also calls for one-time$1,500 payments to Texas households from the state's Rainy Day Fund.
The Texas Newsroom's Lucio Vasquez provided additional reporting for this story.
Copyright 2026 KUT News