Texas Governor 2026

Election day is November 3, 2026. A statewide contest in Texas.

Who is favoured in Texas Governor?

Run the forecaster to pull current reporting on this race, score it issue by issue, and see who it favours.

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What the Texas Governor election decides

State government decides most of what touches daily life directly: schools, roads, policing, public health, utilities regulation, and the state's share of healthcare programs. A governor's veto and budget proposal set the boundaries of what a legislature can do.

A governor signs or vetoes state law, proposes the state budget, commands the state's emergency response, and in most states shapes how elections themselves are administered. Texas decides this alongside its 38 House seats and a U.S. Senate seat. Governors are judged on results inside the state rather than on national mood alone, which is why governor's races often break differently from federal contests held the same day.

How Texas votes

Texas is the largest Republican-led state, with booming and diversifying metros set against a vast conservative rural base. Energy, the border and the grid define its statewide races, which have tightened without yet flipping. That backdrop is the ground any Texas campaign fights on, and it is what the Electorate HQ simulation reads first when it weighs a ticket's platform against this contest.

About this race

The 2026 Texas gubernatorial election is scheduled to take place on November 3, 2026, to elect the governor of Texas. Republican incumbent Greg Abbott is seeking a fourth term. He is being challenged by Democratic state representative Gina Hinojosa.

Primary elections were held on March 3, 2026. Facing minimal opposition, Abbott won the Republican nomination with 82% of the vote. Hinojosa won the Democratic nomination with 59% of the vote over a field of candidates that included former congressman Chris Bell.

If Abbott is re-elected, he will become the state's longest-serving governor. Democrats have not won a gubernatorial election in Texas since 1990.

Latest coverage of the Texas Governor race

Democratic candidate Gina Hinojosa calls Texas governor race ‘most important in America’ at Houston rallyhoustonpublicmedia.org · 06 Aug 2026Here's your 2026 Texas ballot for the November electionapps.texastribune.org · 01 Sep 2026Democrats gain momentum in pivotal US Senate and governor’s races in TexasAl Jazeera · 07 Aug 2026Texas governor 2026: What to know about Greg Abbott and Gina HinojosaThe Texas Tribune · 25 Sep 2026What does it mean to be a Texas Republican in 2026? It depends who you askKUT · 27 Aug 2026

The rest of the Texas ballot

Every Texas House district, the counties inside each one, and an address lookup that resolves your exact districts are on the Texas state page.

Other 2026 races in Texas

Analysis covering Texas

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