Gina Hinojosa won the race for governor of Texas on Tuesday, defeating Gov. Greg Abbott and becoming the first Latina ever elected to lead the nation's second largest state. The Austin Democrat denied Abbott a fourth term and broke a Republican hold on the office that stretched back more than three decades.

When she is sworn in this January, Hinojosa will be the first Democrat in the governor's office since Ann Richards stepped down in 1995. She will also be only the third woman to hold the job, after Richards and Miriam "Ma" Ferguson nearly a century ago.

Hinojosa, 52, grew up with family roots in the Rio Grande Valley and built her career around public schools. She led the Austin school board before winning a seat in the Texas House, where she has served five terms. Her margin on Tuesday was larger than even the most hopeful forecasts inside her own party.

Schools and household bills at the center

Her campaign leaned hard on two themes: classrooms and the cost of daily life. She fought the state's new private school voucher program, which steered $1 billion in public money to private tuition this year. She has promised to replace the state's education commissioner with a career educator who has led a classroom.

She also spoke often about the bills that squeeze Texas families each month. At rallies from the border to the big city suburbs, she pitched herself as a parent and former school board leader who knows those pressures firsthand.

A divided capital ahead

Hinojosa will likely face a Republican legislature in Austin, which means her biggest plans will need support across party lines. Political observers in the state described her win as a political earthquake. They noted that the real test begins when lawmakers return to the Capitol in January.

For Latino families who make up close to forty percent of the state's population, the victory carries special weight. Many voters said they never expected to see someone with their roots and their story in the Governor's Mansion in their lifetime.