<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Democratic Texas State Rep. <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/state/4480149/who-is-gina-hinojosa-greg-abbott-challenger-texas-governor-race/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Gina Hinojosa</a> criticized former President <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/joe-biden/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s</a> approach to immigration policy in an interview this week, stating that his policies on illegal immigration negatively impacted Democrats in the 2024 election cycle.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“Biden’s problem is he didn’t lead on immigration,” Hinojosa said in an <a href="https://x.com/politico/status/2103564615602802968?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">interview</a> with <em>Politico</em>. “He was silent mostly. He hid from it, and that did hurt us last election cycle. It hurt all Democrats.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Hinojosa is the Democratic nominee challenging three-term incumbent Gov. <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/greg-abbott/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Greg Abbott</a> (R-TX), who has been a long-time critic of Biden’s immigration policies and a supporter of former President <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/donald-trump/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Donald Trump’s</a> immigration and border security platform.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Abbott has protested the Biden administration’s immigration agenda by <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/1190823/texas-bus-makes-first-migrant-drop-off-near-us-capitol-in-washington/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">busing migrants from Texas border communities</a> to Washington, D.C., and sanctuary cities, starting in early April 2022. His strict measures on illegal immigration have gained popularity in Texas.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Hinojosa has distanced herself from the Democratic Party on certain issues, releasing an ad stating her <a href="https://ginafortexas.com/2026/09/new-ad-pronouns-hinojosa-fights-for-working-families-abbott-runs-same-old-playbook/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">pronouns</a> as “Mom, Texan, and soon to be: Governor” and supporting Trump’s proposal for a <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/state/4721893/gina-hinojosa-backs-trump-dividend-minus-condition/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">$5,000 dividend check</a> if decoupled from conditions on midterm results. This week, she added Biden’s immigration agenda to her list of critiques.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“We need Democrats, we need leaders who will do the hard work, roll up their sleeves to figure out solutions,” Hinojosa stated in the interview.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">She expressed support for body cameras and dash cameras for police and law enforcement, and noted that she has not “considered” the Democratic calls for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, stating it is “not something that a governor has any say over.” Hinojosa criticized ICE’s conduct and immigration enforcement under the Trump administration as “unacceptable” and “wrong,” adding there “should be a path to legality” for “hardworking, law-abiding” illegal immigrants who have been in the country for many years.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Abbott’s campaign responded to Hinojosa’s comments in a post on X, highlighting that in 2021, Hinojosa <a href="https://x.com/GinaHinojosaTX/status/1410539285233741824?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">stated on social media</a> that Biden’s border policies were “restoring order & humanity.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“Gina is running from her record as the most far-left member of the Texas House,” the Abbott campaign wrote on X. “She praised Joe Biden and claimed he restored ‘order & humanity’ at the border. Plain and simple, she is lying to get elected.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><strong><a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/crime/4733200/greg-abbott-freezes-new-flock-cameras-texas-roads/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">GREG ABBOTT FREEZES NEW FLOCK CAMERAS ON TEXAS ROADS BUT ALLOWS EXISTING ONES TO REMAIN</a></strong></p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Texas’s gubernatorial race is rated as “likely Republican” by the <em>Cook Political Report.</em> Trump won the state by 13.9 percentage points in 2024.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/texas-governor-election-polls-2026.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Polling</a> in the race has shown Abbott leading by single digits, although some polls indicate Hinojosa leading by three or four percentage points.</p>