Governor of Texas

Greg Abbott has been governor of Texas since 2015 and is seeking a fourth term²¹. He previously served as Texas attorney general from 2002 to 2015, as a justice on the Supreme Court of Texas, and as a district judge in Houston².

Where they stand

• Abortion: Illegal, except to save the mother's life or in cases of rape or incest Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 8, the Texas Heartbeat Act, which bans most abortions after cardiac activity is detected and lets private citizens sue. (2021-05-19) source
  • He signed HB 1280, which prohibits abortion in Texas and creates criminal penalties. (2021-06-16) source
  • He signed SB 31, which sets out when physicians may use medical judgment to perform an otherwise prohibited abortion. (2025-06-20) source
  • He signed HB 7, which prohibits the manufacture and provision of abortion-inducing drugs. (2025-09-17) source
• Guns: Remove most restrictions; bearing arms is a right Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 1927, which allows people 21 and older who may legally possess a handgun to carry one without a license. (2021-06-16) source
  • His campaign lists signing constitutional carry and declaring Texas a Second Amendment sanctuary state among his accomplishments. (2026) source
• Immigration: Deport everyone here illegally, as quickly as possible Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 4, which makes illegal entry into Texas from a foreign country a state crime. (2023-12-18) source
  • At the signing he said the new laws would help stop the 'tidal wave of illegal entry' and fund more border wall. (2023-12-18) source
  • He signed SB 8, which deals with agreements between certain sheriffs and ICE to enforce federal immigration law. (2025-06-20) source
  • His campaign says he ordered state agencies to assist in arresting, jailing and deporting people in the country illegally and required every county to cooperate with ICE. (2026) source
• School choice: Yes, universal school choice for every family Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 2, which created an education savings account program. (2025-05-03) source
  • His campaign calls it the first universal school choice program in Texas, funded at 1 billion dollars. (2026) source
• Property taxes: Eliminate school property taxes and replace them with sales tax or state money Said · medium confidence
  • Abbott has called for a constitutional amendment to eliminate school property taxes for homeowners, paid for with state surplus money, along with a 3 percent appraisal cap and a two-thirds voter approval requirement for local tax increases. (2025-12-11) source
  • He signed SB 4, which raised the school district homestead exemption. (2025-06-16) source
  • He signed SB 23, which raised the school district homestead exemption for people who are elderly or disabled. (2025-06-16) source
  • His campaign says the exemptions rose from 100,000 to 140,000 dollars, and from 110,000 to 200,000 dollars for elderly and disabled homeowners. (2026) source
• Gender care for minors: No, ban these treatments for minors Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 14, which prohibits gender transition procedures and treatments for minors. (2023-06-02) source
• Transgender athletes: No, teams should be based on biological sex, with open or coed options Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 25, requiring K-12 students to compete on teams matching the sex on their birth certificate. (2021-10-25) source
  • He signed SB 15, applying a similar rule to college sports. (2023-06-18) source
• DEI programs: Ban DEI offices and required training at public institutions, as Texas has Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 17, which bans diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at public universities. (2023-06-17) source
  • He signed SB 12, which bars DEI duties in K-12 public schools. (2025-06-20) source
• Religion in schools: Support Texas's laws: Ten Commandments in classrooms and optional prayer periods Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 10, requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public school classrooms. (2025-06-20) source
  • He signed SB 11, which provides for a period of prayer and reading of the Bible or other religious texts in public schools. (2025-06-20) source
• Curriculum and books: Parents, including the right to remove material they object to Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 900, which sets standards for sexually explicit material in school library books and requires vendors to rate books. (2023-06-13) source
  • He signed SB 13, which creates local school library advisory councils and sets parental rights regarding school library materials. (2025-06-20) source
• Election rules: Strict photo ID, paper ballots, cleaner voter rolls and fewer mail ballots Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 1, which banned 24-hour voting, limited drive-through voting, barred officials from sending unrequested mail ballot applications and expanded poll watcher access. (2021-09-07) source
  • His campaign says he raised the penalty for voter fraud to a second-degree felony. (2026) source
• Redistricting: State legislatures draw maps and may redraw any time, including for partisan advantage Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 4, a new congressional map passed in a 2025 special session, four years after the 2021 map. (2025-08-29) source
• Policing and crime: Tougher sentences, more police funding, and stricter bail Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 1900, which penalizes large cities that cut police budgets. (2021-06-01) source
  • He signed SB 9, which changes pretrial release rules and regulates charitable bail organizations. (2025-06-16) source
  • His campaign says he passed a bail package allowing judges to deny bail for violent crimes such as murder and rape. (2026) source
• Marijuana: Decriminalize small amounts (fines, not jail) Said · medium confidence
  • Abbott said he supports lowering the penalty for small amounts of marijuana to a Class C misdemeanor but does not support legalization. (2022-05-17) source
  • A 2023 news report says Abbott expressed support for the intent of HB 218, a House bill that would have made possession of an ounce or less a fine-only Class C misdemeanor. (2023-04-26) source
  • He signed HB 46, which changes the medical use of low-THC cannabis under the Texas Compassionate-Use Program. (2025-06-20) source
• Texas power grid: Pay for more backup natural gas plants Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 2627, which set up funding to support building and operating power plants. (2023-06-09) source
  • His campaign calls the resulting 10 billion dollar Texas Energy Fund the largest investment in dispatchable energy in state history. (2026) source
  • After the 2021 winter storm he signed SB 3, which addresses preparing for and preventing weather emergencies and power outages and raises penalties. (2021-06-08) source
• AI data centers: Welcome them, but make them pay their full share of grid and water costs Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 6, which sets planning, interconnection and cost rules for certain very large electric loads, such as data centers. (2025-06-20) source
• Energy and climate: All of the above: oil, gas, nuclear and renewables, and let markets pick Said · medium confidence
  • Abbott's campaign highlights Texas leading in oil and gas, wind, solar and battery storage, a 10 billion dollar fund for dispatchable power, and a new state nuclear office. (2026) source
• Nuclear power: Back new reactors with public funds, tax credits, and streamlined approvals Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 14, which supports development of the nuclear energy industry in Texas. (2025-06-20) source
  • His campaign says the law created the Texas Advanced Nuclear Energy Office. (2026) source
• AI regulation: Let states like Texas write their own targeted AI rules Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 149, which regulates the use of artificial intelligence systems in Texas and sets civil penalties. (2025-06-22) source
• Kids online: Also require safe-by-default design and a legal duty of care Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed HB 18, the SCOPE Act, which protects minors from harmful or deceptive practices on digital services. (2023-06-13) source
  • HB 18 requires digital service providers to have users register their age, give verified parents supervision tools, and adopt a strategy to prevent known minors' exposure to harmful material. (2023-06-13) source
  • He signed SB 2420, which regulates app stores for mobile devices; his campaign says it requires parental consent for children to download apps. (2025-05-27) source
• China policy: Get tougher: broad tariffs, land purchase bans like Texas SB 17, and forced app sales Official action · high confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 17, which restricts purchases of Texas real estate by certain foreign individuals and entities. (2025-06-20) source
  • His campaign says the law bars land sales to hostile foreign adversaries such as China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, and that he ordered state agencies to divest from China. (2026) source
• Housing and growth: Allow townhomes and apartments in more places to bring prices down Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 15, which limits lot size and density requirements for new homes in certain cities. (2025-06-20) source
  • He signed SB 840, which limits city regulation of certain mixed-use and multifamily projects and conversions of commercial buildings to housing. (2025-06-20) source
• E-Verify mandate: Require it only for government and state contractors, as Texas does now Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 374, requiring state agencies to use E-Verify. (2015-06-10) source
• Business regulation: Cut red tape, but keep core safety and environmental rules Official action · medium confidence
  • Abbott signed SB 14, which reforms how state agencies adopt rules and impose regulatory requirements. (2025-04-23) source
  • His campaign says he directed state agencies to cut unnecessary regulations and established a Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office. (2026) source
• Healthcare: Private insurance with more competition and price transparency, keeping protections for pre-existing conditions Said · medium confidence
  • Abbott proposed letting small businesses offer health plans that skip state coverage mandates beyond federal requirements, and capping co-pays for inhalers and epinephrine at 25 dollars. (2026-07-30) source
  • The same report notes Abbott has opposed expanding Medicaid, citing cost. (2026-07-30) source

No public position found on: Safety net programs, Minimum wage, Judges, Politicians trading stocks, Term limits, Campaign finance, Electoral College, Ranked-choice voting, Death penalty, Qualified immunity, Mandatory minimums, Drug prices, Childcare and pre-K, Paid leave, Student loans, School vaccines.

Record

• Governor of Texas since 2015; attorney general of Texas from 2002 to 2015².
• Launched Operation Lone Star, a state border security operation, in March 2021³.
• Signed a package of border security laws in December 2023, including SB 4 on illegal entry and border wall funding⁸.
• Signed SB 2, the state's education savings account program, on May 3, 2025¹⁶.
• Vetoed SB 3, a ban on hemp-derived THC products, on June 22, 2025⁴³⁷.
• Signed a new congressional district map, HB 4, on August 29, 2025²⁸.
• Listed by the Texas Secretary of State as the Republican nominee for governor in the November 3, 2026 general election¹.