WASHINGTON: Texas Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa has highlighted her plans to bring in “laws to protect Texans” from data centres, which she said were taking advantage of rural communities in the state.
Speaking to CNN, Hinojosa stated, “Right now, what has happened is data centres have moved into mostly rural communities, and there are no rules and laws to protect Texans, and Texans are being taken advantage of.”
She maintained that Texas has been a pro-business state; however, she aims at business partnerships that benefit Texans. “We have always been a pro-business state in Texas, but what changes now with me as governor is it has to be a partnership that benefits Texans,” she told CNN.
“So the difference is we will have laws to protect Texans, and we need to stop what we’re doing with data centres until we have those protections. We can have a strong economy, strong industry and protections for the people of Texas. Those things are not mutually exclusive, and I’ll make sure, as governor, I lead to ensure that happens,” she added.
Texas Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa: “It is not that I hate data centers. I hate the way they are taking advantage of Texas”
Asked whether data centers still have a future in Texas:
HINOJOSA: “Right. Well, we have always been a pro-business state in Texas. But what changes now with me as governor is it has to be a partnership that benefits Texans. And right now what has happened is data centers have moved into mostly rural communities and there are no rules and laws to protect Texans and Texans are being taken advantage of. So the difference is we will have laws to protect Texans and we need to stop what we’re doing with data centers until we have those protections. We can have a strong economy, strong industry and protections for the people of Texas. Those things are not mutually exclusive, and I’ll make sure as governor I lead to ensure that that happens.”
TAPPER: “So you’re not ruling out that data centers will be able to be built in Texas, it’s just you want there to be regulations to protect communities, is that right?”
HINOJOSA: “And that communities have a seat at the table to decide if and how these data centers come into their communities. Texas is like a country. We are so diverse in all the ways. Different communities have different needs. And those communities have to be able to walk away from the table to leverage what they need for their community. So absolutely, we need to make sure they are partners in this effort. And that has always been my position. It is not that I hate data centers. I hate the way they are taking advantage of Texas. And that stops when I’m governor.”
— Fireside Alpha (@firesidealpha) November 6, 2026
While she did not rule out building of data centres in Texas, she discussed the communities having a stake in decision-making. She said, “It is not that I hate data centres. I hate the way they are taking advantage of Texas. And that stops when I’m governor”.
When asked whether SpaceX CEO Elon Musk might move out of Texas, Gina Hinojosa said, “We can have a strong working relationship with Musk and his companies, but it has to be on our terms. It cannot be just running over the people of Texas.”
When asked about blocking the sale of a Texas state park to SpaceX, and whether Musk might leave the state over itm the Governor-elect said, “We have to have balance. These are our beaches we’re talking about. I mean, selling our beach to Elon Musk is just something that is almost unimaginable. It’s unacceptable. Our beaches are enshrined in our Texas Constitution as being free and open to the people of Texas because they are our beaches.”
Democrat Gina Hinojosa won the Texas governor’s race, defeating Republican Governor Greg Abbott. Hinojosa ended more than three decades of Republican domination in the office as the first Democrat elected governor of Texas since Ann Richards in 1990 and the state’s first Latina governor. (ANI)
