Democrat Gina Hinojosa defeated Gov. Greg Abbott in the Texas governor's race on Nov. 3, PBS NewsHour reported. The Associated Press called the race at 11:17 p.m. EST, according to PBS NewsHour.

Hinojosa will be Texas' first Latina governor and the first Democrat to win the office since 1990. Abbott conceded on election night, KSAT reported.

The result is an upset. Abbott had served as governor since 2015 and was seeking a fourth term. He won re-election by more than 10 points four years ago, according to Time.

Local rallies preceded the vote

The race played out in the Spring area's backyard. The Houston Chronicle reported that Abbott held a final rally at Don Ramon's Mexican Restaurant in northwest Houston on Nov. 2. State Rep. Valoree Swanson, R-Spring, joined the governor to give opening remarks.

Abbott had invested more than $25 million to boost Republican turnout in Harris County, the Chronicle reported. Harris County's early voting totals had already surpassed its 2018 numbers, when Democrat Beto O'Rourke came within a few points of unseating Sen. Ted Cruz, according to the Chronicle.

Statewide, more than 7.4 million Texans voted during the two-week early voting period, Houston Public Media reported. Including mail ballots, more than 7.7 million votes were cast before Election Day, representing over 40% of the state's 19 million registered voters.

What the candidates ran on

Abbott campaigned on property tax relief, border security and expanding school choice, according to KSAT. He championed the state's education savings account program, which allows eligible families to use public money for certain private school or homeschool expenses.

Hinojosa, a five-term state representative from Austin, centered her campaign on public school funding, affordability and government accountability. She proposed a $1,500 payment to every Texas household, which she called a "corruption tax refund," and called for suspending the state gas tax, according to the Austin American-Statesman.

What comes next

Hinojosa will serve a four-year term beginning in January 2027, according to KPRC. Major changes to education funding, taxes and other laws would require cooperation from the Republican-controlled Legislature, KSAT reported.

Texas Secretary of State Robert Howden announced a record 19,041,684 registered voters ahead of the election, a 2.2% increase from the November 2024 general election.