Gina Hinojosa Appoints Republican in First Move as Governor-Elect

Newsweek · Emma Marsden · 2026-11-06 15:26 UTC

Gina Hinojosa named Republican former lawmaker Ernest Bailes to her bipartisan transition team ahead of taking office in January.

Texas Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa, a Democrat, has named a Republican former lawmaker to her transition leadership team, making a bipartisan appointment as she prepares to take office in January.

Former state Representative Ernest Bailes, a conservative from East Texas, is among the first four people selected to help shape Hinojosa's incoming administration.

The announcement came on November 5 during Hinojosa's first public appearance since defeating three-term incumbent Republican Governor Greg Abbott in Tuesday's election. The governor-elect said she wanted her administration to represent Texans across the political spectrum, not only the Democrats who supported her campaign.

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