(WACO, Texas) — State Rep. Gina Hinojosa brought her campaign for Texas governor to Waco, where she spoke with neighbors about making the state more affordable, improving healthcare, and investing in public education.
"We secure the American dream because if you cannot afford to live and thrive in Texas, then the dream is out of reach," Hinojosa said.
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A central piece of her plan is a $1,500 tax refund for Texas households, using money she says could come from the state's savings.
"What I say, if they're not gonna spend it, then just send it back to the people; it amounts to about $1,500 for Texas households. I would take it back down to what it historically has been at, and that's $10 billion, and send the rest back to the people. I called the Greg Abbott corruption tax refund in light of the fact that Greg Abbott's given $1,000,000,000 in no-bid contracts to his donors," Hinojosa said.
When I asked her what else she would do to lower costs for Texans, she pointed to electricity.
"Freeze electricity rates. We are the most people in of any state being disconnected from their electricity because they cannot afford to pay their bills because our electricity prices have skyrocketed," Hinojosa said.
On healthcare, Hinojosa says she wants to target insurance denials and the cost of coverage.
"Ban those bad faith denials. We pay more and more for health insurance; it's harder to get the doctors and medication we need. We got to rein in those health insurance companies. So that's where I would begin," Hinojosa said.
But Hinojosa says public education is at the center of her campaign.
"Day one, I will fire Mike Morath, the Texas Education Agency Commissioner. I will wipe clean Greg Abbott's contracts as TEA. Texas Education Agency has gone from 40 contracts to over 200 under Greg Abbott. We need to get back to basics. Use that money to pay teachers, their work, and pause the A through F accountability system that is based on a deeply flawed STAAR test," Hinojosa said.
Hinojosa's campaign continues in El Paso. With early voting ending later this week, the campaign is also reminding Texans to get to the polls.
