With votes still being counted across Texas, Hinojosa has 56.4% of the vote and Abbott has 42.3%. Those numbers could change as more votes are counted.

In Ellis County, unofficial results showed about 53% of voters in the governor’s race backed Abbott and about 45% backed Hinojosa. The rest voted for Libertarian Pat Dixon or a write-in candidate.

Who is Gina Hinojosa?

Hinojosa grew up in the Rio Grande Valley and went to public schools in Brownsville. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin and became a lawyer who represented workers.

She got into politics when her son’s elementary school in Austin was at risk of closing. She joined other parents to keep it open and won a seat on the school board. She later became the board’s president.

Hinojosa began representing central Austin in the Texas House in 2017. One issue that divided her and Abbott was how to pay for schools. Abbott wanted families to be able to use state money for private school tuition. Hinojosa opposed the plan, saying it would leave less money for public schools.