一名试图阻止共和党在十年中期重新绘制该州国会地图的德克萨斯州民主党人正在寻求将这种战斗精神带到州长官邸。
奥斯汀地区的民主党众议员吉娜·伊诺霍萨(Gina Hinojosa)周二发起了一项旨在罢免共和党州长格雷格·艾伯特(Greg Abbott)的努力。
伊诺霍萨告诉美国广播公司新闻，她认为德克萨斯州的选民希望有一个充满活力的，新鲜的候选人来对抗阿博特，阿博特正在竞选第四个任期。
“我认为美国人已经和往常一样厌倦了政治，他们对摆脱标签感兴趣，只想看到一些真实的东西，”她说。“我和你一样真实——一个发疯的母亲去竞选公职。”
前奥斯汀ISD学校董事会主席伊诺霍萨将代表德克萨斯公立学校，以教育和竞选为中心参与竞选。伊诺霍萨于2016年当选州议员。
“10年后，我现在明白我们的钱去了哪里，我们的钱去了供应商的合同，去了富裕的亿万富翁阶层，而不是去满足德克萨斯人的需求，”她说。
伊诺霍萨是今年夏天第一批立法者中的一员，离开了这个州拒绝他们的共和党对手的法定人数，这使得阿博特支持的特别会议，以实施新的共和党青睐的国会地图嘎然而止。
法定人数的中断开启了一个全国重划选区传奇;备受瞩目的民主党人，如伊利诺伊州加州州长加文·纽瑟姆。州长JB Pritzker和纽约州州长Kathy Hochul接待了这些议员，以抗议这些地图。
普利兹克在摊牌中扮演了一个超大的角色，帮助协调数十名州议员的旅行和住宿，因为他们在伊利诺伊州露营，时间紧迫。前总统巴拉克·奥巴马甚至打电话到他们在伊利诺伊州的营地表示支持。
德克萨斯州的共和党人做到了最终通过在建立第二次特别会议后，新的国会地图，尽管包括伊诺霍萨在内的德克萨斯州民主党人宣布他们的集体行动是一场胜利。纽瑟姆和加州民主党人反过来发起了他们自己的努力，以通过倾向于蓝色的地图，在今年11月将这个问题提交给选民。
伊诺霍萨说，她参与法定人数休息“打开了我的眼睛”，选民们已经准备好战斗。
“我可以竞选州长，因为我相信得克萨斯人会支持我，会和我站在一起。法定人数的突破确实扩大了我对德州人的理解，当谈到他们希望看到他们的领导人做什么时，选民在2025年的今天是什么样的，”她说。
但自称民粹主义者的伊诺霍萨有很大的优势。自1994年以来，没有一个民主党人赢得德克萨斯州的州级职位。德克萨斯州的拉丁裔人口慢慢向特朗普靠拢在过去的几次选举中。2020年，川普在该州领先前总统乔·拜登6个百分点——2024年，差距扩大，当时川普以14个百分点击败前副总统卡玛拉·哈里斯。
她还必须在初选中挤走民主党的重要挑战者。前得克萨斯州州长马克·怀特的儿子安德魯·怀特也参加了竞选。她还面临着更多知名民主党人的潜力加入战斗。(尽管伊诺霍萨说，众议员华金·卡斯特罗和前国会议员贝托·奥鲁克都告诉她，他们已经排除了竞选州长的可能性。)
尽管如此，她觉得自己能够应对这些挑战。并打赌德州选民会有同样的感受。
“人们想要改变。我是改变的候选人。格雷格·艾伯特是维持现状的候选人，内幕俱乐部用我们纳税人的钱中饱私囊。所以，作为一名候选人，我感觉很好，因为我代表了得克萨斯人希望看到的领导人的愿望。
Texas State Rep. Gina Hinojosa launches Democratic bid for governor
One of the Texas Democrats who attempted to block Republican efforts to redraw the state's congressional maps mid-decade is looking to bring that fighting spirit to the governor’s mansion.
Austin-area state Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a Democrat, on Tuesday launched a bid to unseat Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.
Hinojosa told ABC News she believes Texas voters desire a spirited, fresh candidate to take on Abbott, who is running for a fourth term.
"I think Americans are done with politics as usual and are interested in shaking off labels and just wanting to see something real," she said. "I'm as real as you get -- a mom who got mad [who] ran for office."
A former Austin ISD school board president, Hinojosa will center education, and campaigning on behalf of Texas public schools, in her bid. Hinojosa was elected to the statehouse in 2016.
"After 10 years, I now understand where our money is going and our money is going to vendor contracts and to enrich the billionaire class and not to the needs of Texans," she said.
Hinojosa was part of the first wave of legislators who, this summer,left the stateto deny their Republican counterparts a quorum, which brought the Abbott-backed special session to implement new GOP-favored congressional maps to a screeching halt.
The quorum break kicked off anational redistricting saga; high-profile Democrats, like California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Illinois. Gov. JB Pritzker, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul hosted these lawmakers to protest the maps.
Pritzker took on an outsized role in the showdown, helping coordinate the travel and lodging of dozens of state lawmakers as they camped out in Illinois and ran out the clock. Former President Barack Obama even called into their Illinois’ encampment and offered support.
Texas Republicans dideventually passnew congressional maps after establishing a second special session, though Texas Democrats, Hinojosa among them, heralded their collective action as a win. Newsom and California Democrats, in turn, launched their own effort to pass blue-leaning maps, bringing the issue to voters on a proposition this November.
Hinojosa said her involvement in the quorum break “opened my eyes” that voters are ready for a fight.
"I can run for governor because I have faith in Texans that they will have my back and that they are in this with me. That quorum break did expand my understanding of where Texans, where voters are today in 2025 when it comes to what they want to see their leaders doing," she said.
But Hinojosa, a self-described populist, has a lot of ground to gain. No Democrat has won a statewide office in Texas since 1994. And Texas’ Latino population has beenslowly edging toward Trumpover the last few elections. Trump led former President Joe Biden by 6 points in the state in 2020 -- and the gulf grew in 2024, when trounced former Vice President Kamala Harris by 14 points.
She must also edge out serious Democratic challengers in the primary. Andrew White, the son of former Texas Gov. Mark White, is also running. And she faces the potential of more well-known Democratsjumping into the fray. (Though Hinojosa says both Rep. Joaquin Castro and former congressman Beto O’Rourke have told her they’ve ruled out a gubernatorial run.)
Despite it all, she feels she can navigate these challenges. And is making a bet that Texas voters feel the same.
"People want change. I'm the candidate of change. Greg Abbott is the candidate of status quo, of the insider club enriching themselves with our taxpayer dollars. So, I feel very good about being a candidate that represents the desires and what Texans want to see in a leader," Hinojosa said.
