Gina Hinojosa Vows to Eliminate Prison Terms for Texas Abortion Doctors

During a televised interview, Democratic candidate for Texas governor Gina Hinojosa reiterated her belief in a woman’s right to choose and pledged to overturn the state’s criminal statutes that impose up to 99 years in prison on doctors who perform abortions. She explained that these severe penalties, enforced by political oversight boards, discourage physicians from intervening even when a pregnancy threatens a mother’s life, causing women to wait until critical conditions arise.

Hinojosa said changing the extreme bans will require multiple election cycles, but she sees an opening to start by removing the punitive sentences for doctors. She emphasized that many Texans are dying because of delayed care and that there is bipartisan appetite for this specific reform. The proposal targets the criminal penalties rather than the broader abortion ban.