Democrat Gina Hinojosa defeated Gov. Greg Abbott for governor Tuesday, denying the Republican a record fourth term and triggering a political earthquake in a state that has not seen a Democrat sit in the governor’s mansion this century.
Abbott conceded at 10 p.m. at his results watch party. He said he had just gotten off the phone with Hinojosa to congratulate her.
“I love our state. It has been an honor to serve it. And know that we are leaving Texas in far better shape than it’s ever been. Together, we’ve accomplished a lot,” he said.
With a populist campaign promise to revitalize public schools and purge state government of undue corporate and billionaire influence, Hinojosa overcame a more than four-to-one spending disparity to topple the three-term Republican incumbent as part of a blue wave that washed over a long drought-ridden state for Democrats.
Though he launched his reelection bid with the power of incumbency, seemingly limitless fundraising and extensive party infrastructure in place, Abbott was ultimately unable to withstand the intense political headwinds facing the GOP this cycle.
First thing they need do in Texas, if they can somehow manage without needing supermajorities like everything seems to need in the US, is spin off all election tasks to a properly independent organisation with the mission of running elections fairly, depoliticise all the voting, electoral boundaries especially.
Get a few elections with this organisation in place, people generally see the value, if they don’t initially and in future some Governor is able to shit it down, I have no doubt all that Governor would be doing is starting the timer until the people demand it back.
Its much easier to deny people things they’d like when they’ve never had them, it gets much harder when they know what they’re missing.
They need a commission to redraw the maps or Texas will flip again in two years. I hope they know that they only have power because gerrymanders are weak to wave elections.