Texas Dems vowed seismic education change. Here’s how schools could change for millions of students

From state takeovers to religion in classrooms to who’s overseeing public schools, Texas is poised to see a profound shift in K-12 education priorities after Democrats swept statewide elected offices, including the governor’s race, attorney general’s office and control of state House.

Gina Hinojosa, a former Austin ISD school board president, became the first Democrat to win the governor’s seat since 1990 after campaigning on a platform of “saving” Texas public schools. She pledged to remove Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath from his role on her first day in office, as well as eliminate state takeovers of districts.

“We are taking our children’s education back from a government that has failed them,” Hinojosa said in her victory speech. “Schools will not be taken out of our control, shuttered or suffocated. Being a parent is hard enough without carrying the burden of a government’s failures.”

However, Hinojosa cannot single-handedly reverse years of Republican-led policies during the upcoming legislation session. Several of the issues she campaigned against are enshrined in state law, requiring help from the Legislature to alter or overturn.

Hinojosa will have help advancing her agenda from Democrat Lt. Gov Vikki Goodwin, who will oversee the Senate, and a Democratic majority in the state House. However, Republicans lawmakers maintain a majority in the state’s upper chamber, where they have the authority to approve or reject Hinojosa’s appointees as well as the ability to impact Democrats’ priority legislation.

The end to GOP dominance in several other statewide offices — including the attorney general and comptroller — is likely to have major implications for millions of students. By Wednesday evening, Republicans were in jeopardy of losing control of the 15-member State Board of Education that recently adopted conservative measures such as requiring Bible stories in reading lessons.

The Texas Attorney General’s office will be led by a Democrat for the first time since 1994. Under Ken Paxton, the office frequently threatened legal action or investigated public schools, including for reportedly failing to comply with a law requiring the display of donated Ten Commandments posters or for not keeping students on campus when they protested against immigration enforcement.

During the election, Democrats took aim at Texas’ newly launched $1 billion school voucher program, which provides families publicly-funded vouchers for private schools or home schooling. Incumbent Comptroller Don Huffines, who made expanding the voucher program a priority, was defeated from his role as the chief financial officer in Texas.

Here’s a look at what could change in K-12 education in Texas under Democratic leadership:

Eliminating STAAR

Hinojosa pledged to eliminate STAAR and “tests like it.” Students in grades 3-8 currently take the state’s standardized exams annually in math and reading. Fifth graders also take science, while eighth graders take history and science. High school students take the end-of-course STAAR in algebra I, biology, English I, English II and U.S. history.

In 2025, Texas lawmakers passed legislation to swap the STAAR for three shorter tests to be given at the beginning, middle and end of each school year. Students will begin to take the new tests, called the Student Success Tool, next school year.

Hinojosa opposes the new tool, but she would need the Legislature to modify existing state law.

Federal law prohibits her from completely eliminating standardized tests. The Every Student Succeeds Act, signed into law by former President Barack Obama requires states to administer annual tests in reading and math in the third through eighth grades and once in high school.

Removing Mike Morath

Hinojosa vowed to fire Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath from his role on her first day in office and replace him with an educator.

The TEA commissioner serves four-year terms. Morath’s current term is set to expire in January, the same month Hinojosa is sworn in as governor.

Hinojosa must appoint someone and submit the name to the Texas Senate for official confirmation. Under the state constitution, the appointee needs approval from two-thirds of the Texas Senate during the upcoming legislative session.

If an appointee is not approved, the position will remain vacant. Texas law requires the governor to nominate someone else “without delay.” If none of her appointees obtain approval during the session, she can appoint someone during the recess. That person could remain in the role until the Senate returns to a legislative session and votes on the appointee.

TEA officials did not respond to a request for comment.

State takeovers

Texas has seven districts, including Fort Worth and Houston, where Morath has replaced superintendents and appointed managers to assume the authority of locally elected trustees since 2023.

Hinojosa pledged to stop state takeovers of public school districts. State law requires the Texas education commissioner must take over a district after one of its campuses earns five consecutive academically unacceptable ratings from the state or close the failing school.

To eliminate takeovers entirely, Texas law would need changing. However, Hinojosa would have some flexibility under a new commissioner.

For districts currently under a takeover, a new TEA commissioner could replace any — or all — of the individuals currently appointed as a board manager.

The commissioner also determines the date when the elected trustees can transition back to their roles overseeing the district. Under state law, starting on that date, every year for three years, one-third of the trustees would replace one-third of the appointed board of managers.

The potential shakeups could lead to seismic changes for tens of thousands of teachers, students and families in districts under a state takeover. Governing boards are responsible for key decisions such as hiring and evaluating the superintendent and approving the annual budget.

State Board of Education

Control of the State Board of Education is in the balance as the party split was 7-7 with a Democrat narrowly ahead by fewer than 600 votes for an eighth seat.

At least four new Democrats won seats, giving them significantly more say in standards for what millions of children in public schools should learn in the state.

Before the election, Republicans held an 11-4 supermajority, which they used to author an Islamophobic rewrite of social studies lessons, greenlight mandatory Bible readings for all public school students and approve classroom instruction downplaying the horrors of American slavery.

While all races have not been called, the shift marks a major hit to Republicans’ unrestrained dominance. Members will be responsible for learning materials that Texas students use, charter schools approvals and a school fund worth billions.

Once she takes office, state law allows Hinojosa to appoint a new board chair from among elected members, though the selection requires Senate approval. The current chair is Republican Aaron Kinsey.

School Vouchers

Hinojosa campaigned on ending Texas’ school voucher program that Republican leaders successfully pushed last year.

Under the existing $1 billion program, known as education savings accounts, participating families with a child in private school began qualifying for about $10,500 annually. Home-schoolers can receive up to $2,000 per year, while children with disabilities qualify for up to $30,000.

Hinojosa can’t modify state law alone, but she could veto any future voucher legislation. She could also use the governor’s line-item veto power to eliminate funding for certain items — such as for education savings accounts — from a state budget bill during next year’s session. A veto can only be overridden by a two-thirds majority vote in the House and Senate.

“Our public schools are barely hanging on,” Hinojosa said during a press conference in September. “We cannot afford to take $4 billion to give to this unaccountable voucher scam, so I will block that. I will be against it and do everything in my power to make sure that it is money that is going back into public schools.”

Huffines, the Republican currently overseeing the program, previously requested that lawmakers double the amount of money available for the program in the upcoming session, resulting in a total of more than $2 billion. He will be replaced by Democrat Sarah Eckhardt, who has said she wants to audit the voucher program.

“Hinojosa has been a champion for our public schools, first as a school board member and then a legislator,” said Linda Estrada, president of the Texas State Teachers Association, in a statement. “Now, she will be the advocate and ally educators and students have long needed in the governor’s office to refocus our state’s education priorities on public schools, not privatization.”

Staff writer Jaden Edison contributed to this story.

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