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The 2014 Texas gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the
governor of Texas The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, w ...
. Incumbent Republican Governor
Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...
, who had served since the resignation of then-Governor
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
on December 21, 2000, declined to run for an unprecedented fourth full term, making this the first open election for governor of the state since
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicist ...
. The election took place between nominees who were selected on March 4, 2014: Republican
State Attorney General The state attorney general in each of the 50 U.S. states, of the federal district, or of any of the territories is the chief legal advisor to the state government and the state's chief law enforcement officer. In some states, the attorney ge ...
Greg Abbott Gregory Wayne Abbott (born November 13, 1957) is an American politician, attorney, and former jurist serving as the 48th governor of Texas since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 50th attorney general of Texas from 2002 ...
and Democratic
State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...
Wendy Davis. Also on the ballot were
Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties * Outline of libertariani ...
candidate Kathie Glass and
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...
candidate Brandon Parmer. Abbott was projected to carry the election, and ultimately won handily with a 20.4 percentage point advantage. Exit polls showed Abbott winning Whites (72% to 25%), while Davis received majorities among African Americans (92% to 7%) and Hispanics (55% to 44%). Abbott won roughly half of Hispanic men, 54% of all women, and 62% of married women. Abbott took office on January 20, 2015, as the 48th Governor of Texas.


Republican primary


Candidates


Declared

*
Greg Abbott Gregory Wayne Abbott (born November 13, 1957) is an American politician, attorney, and former jurist serving as the 48th governor of Texas since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 50th attorney general of Texas from 2002 ...
,
Attorney General of Texas The Texas attorney general is the chief legal officer
of the
* Lisa Fritsch, author and radio show host * Larry Kilgore,
perennial candidate A perennial candidate is a political candidate who frequently runs for elected office and rarely, if ever, wins. Perennial candidates' existence lies in the fact that in some countries, there are no laws that limit a number of times a person ca ...
* Miriam Martinez, former
Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and include ...
personality


Withdrew

* Tom Pauken, former
Texas Workforce Commission The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) is a governmental agency in the U.S. state of Texas that provides unemployment benefits and services related to employment to eligible individuals and businesses. For employers, TWC offers recruiting, retent ...
er and former chairman of the
Republican Party of Texas The Republican Party of Texas (RPT) is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in the state of Texas. It is currently chaired by Matt Rinaldi, succeeding Allen West who resigned prior to the expiration of his term to run for govern ...


Declined

* David Dewhurst,
Lieutenant Governor of Texas The lieutenant governor of Texas is the second-highest executive office in the government of Texas, a state in the U.S. It is the second most powerful post in Texas government because its occupant controls the work of the Texas Senate and cont ...
(ran for re-election and lost the party primary runoff) * Debra Medina, activist and candidate for Governor of Texas in 2010 (running for
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts is an executive branch position created by the Texas Constitution. The comptroller is popularly elected every four years, and is primarily tasked with collecting all state tax revenue and estimating the am ...
) *
Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...
, incumbent Governor of Texas


Endorsements


Polling


Results


Democratic primary


Candidates


Declared

* Wendy Davis, state senator * Ray Madrigal,
perennial candidate A perennial candidate is a political candidate who frequently runs for elected office and rarely, if ever, wins. Perennial candidates' existence lies in the fact that in some countries, there are no laws that limit a number of times a person ca ...


Declined

*
Julian Castro Julián Castro ( , ; born September 16, 1974) is an American lawyer and politician from San Antonio. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the youngest member of President Obama's cabinet, serving as the 16th United States Secretary of Ho ...
,
United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development The United States secretary of housing and urban development (or HUD secretary) is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the president's Cabinet, and thirteenth in the presidential line of suc ...
and former mayor of
San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...
*
Kinky Friedman Richard Samet "Kinky" Friedman (born November 1, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist, politician, and former columnist for '' Texas Monthly'' who styles himself in the mold of popular American satirists Will Rogers and M ...
, singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist and independent candidate for governor in 2006 (candidate in May 27 runoff for Texas Commissioner of Agriculture) *
Annise Parker Annise Danette Parker (born May 17, 1956) is an American politician who served as the 61st Mayor of Houston, Texas, from 2010 until 2016. She also served as an at-large member of the Houston City Council from 1998 to 2003 and city controller fro ...
,
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of
Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...
* Mike Villarreal, state representative *
Kirk Watson Kirk is a Scottish and former Northern English word meaning "church". It is often used specifically of the Church of Scotland. Many place names and personal names are also derived from it. Basic meaning and etymology As a common noun, ''kirk'' ...
, state senator and former
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of
Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
* Bill White, former
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of
Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...
and nominee for governor in 2010


Endorsements


Polling


Results


Libertarian nomination


Candidates


Declared

* Robert Bell, pharmaceutical executive and chemist * Robert Garrett, veteran, helicopter mechanic and prison officer * Kathie Glass, attorney * Robert "Star" Locke, rancher, building contractor, veteran and perennial candidate


Withdrew

* Gene Chapman, candidate for
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United St ...
in
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
* R. Lee Wrights, Vice Chair of the
Libertarian National Committee The Libertarian National Committee (LNC) controls and manages the affairs, properties, and funds of the United States Libertarian Party. It is composed of the party officers, five at-large representatives elected every two years at the national ...
and candidate for
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United St ...
in
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gathe ...


Results

Kathie Glass was nominated at the 2014 party convention.


Green nomination


Candidates


Declared

* Brandon Parmer, candidate for
Texas's 6th congressional district Texas's 6th congressional district of the United States House of Representatives is in an area that includes Ellis and Navarro counties to the south and southeast of the Dallas/Fort Worth area plus the southeast corner of Tarrant County. As ...
in
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gathe ...


Independents


Candidates


Declared

* Sarah M. Pavitt, an
Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
veteran and cousin of former SOCOM commander
William H. McRaven William Harry McRaven (born November 6, 1955) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who served as the ninth commander of the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) from August 8, 2011 to August 28, 2014. From 2015 to 2018, ...
, ran as a write-in candidate.


Declined

* Debra Medina, activist and Republican candidate for governor in 2010 (ran unsuccessfully for
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts is an executive branch position created by the Texas Constitution. The comptroller is popularly elected every four years, and is primarily tasked with collecting all state tax revenue and estimating the am ...
)


Primary analysis

In the primary election, Greg Abbott polled 787,766 more votes than Wendy Davis though both were considered certain winners of their party nominations. The Republican turnout overall exceeded the Democrat strength by 786,487, nearly the same gap as that between Abbott and Davis. Both parties saw their turnout decline from 2010. The GOP had 151,101 fewer primary voters in 2014 than in 2010; the Democrats declined by 133,354. Republicans had a total turnout of 9.8 percent in 2014; the Democrats, 3.7 percent. Political scientist Mark P. Jones of
Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...
in
Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...
, declared that the primary returns "looks bad for Democrats. There also wasn't very much going on or Democratsin 2010, yet more people voted in 2010 than voted in 2014. ... Instead of moving toward turning Texas blue, they are moving back towards Texas as an even redder state."Peggy Fikac of the ''
San Antonio Express-News The ''San Antonio Express-News'' is a daily newspaper in San Antonio, Texas. It is owned by the Hearst Corporation and has offices in San Antonio and Austin, Texas. The ''Express-News'' is the third largest newspaper in the state of Texas, with ...
staff, "Turnout less than in 2010", '' Laredo Morning Times'', March 10, 2014, pp. 1, 12A
Davis' intraparty rival and political unknown Ray Madrigal (born c. 1942) of Corpus Christi finished with nearly 21 percent of the vote, but he still outpolled the nominee in two high-profile
South Texas South Texas is a region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of—and includes— San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of this region is about 4. ...
counties with large numbers of
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties form ...
voters, Webb (56-44 percent) and
Hidalgo Hidalgo may refer to: People * Hidalgo (nobility), members of the Spanish nobility * Hidalgo (surname) Places Mexico * Hidalgo (state), in central Mexico * Hidalgo, Coahuila, a town in the north Mexican state of Coahuila * Hidalgo, Nuevo Le ...
(53-47 percent). In the smaller Willacy and LaSalle counties, Madrigal finished ahead of Davis with nearly 61 and 58 percent, respectively.Texas Secretary of State, 2014 Democratic gubernatorial primary election returns In the 1994 Democratic gubernatorial primary, a candidate similar to Madrigal, Gary Espinosa, polled 22.2 percent of the vote against incumbent
Ann Richards Dorothy Ann Richards (née Willis; September 1, 1933 – September 13, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995. A Democrat, she first came to national attention as the Texas State Treasurer, w ...
, who was thereafter unseated by
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
. Richards remains thus far the last Democrat to have served as governor of Texas. Despite the similarity with 1994, Davis told a candidate forum after the primary that she expected no difficulty in attracting large Hispanic support in South Texas in her campaign against Abbott. Davis advisor Matt Angle said that he believed the Republicans performed poorly in the primary and would be damaged in the general election by rhetoric against
illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwa ...
in the heated primary race for
lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
, which continued to a runoff between the incumbent David Dewhurst and the frontrunner, State Senator Dan Patrick, both of Houston. Conversely, Republican consultant Matt Mackowiak said that the Democrats missed an opportunity to bring voters to the polls in a show of strength: "If they think they can skip the primary and have a stunning victory n the general election that's extremely naïve."


General election


Debates

The first of two confirmed gubernatorial debates between Wendy Davis and Greg Abbott took place at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance at 18:00 on Friday, September 19, co-hosted by
KGBT-TV KGBT-TV (channel 4) is a television station licensed to Harlingen, Texas, United States, serving the Lower Rio Grande Valley as a primary Antenna TV owned-and-operated station and a secondary MyNetworkTV affiliate. It is owned by Nexstar Medi ...
, The Monitor and KTLM-TV. KGBT-TV posted the complete video online and can be viewe
here
The debate took place in Edinburg, Texas, and it gave both candidates an opportunity to appeal to the Hispanic community, a grouping seen by ''
Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was establ ...
'' as an "increasingly important voting bloc in Texas." The second debate took place on September 30 and was also poste
online


Predictions


Polling

;With Castro ; With Davis ;With Parker ;With White * * Poll for the Wendy Davis campaign * ^ Poll for the Greg Abbott campaign


Results


See also

*
2014 United States gubernatorial elections United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 4, 2014, in 36 states and three territories, concurrent with other elections during the 2014 United States elections. The Republicans defended 22 seats, compared to the Democrats' 14. ...
*
2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas The 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas were held on Tuesday, November 4, 2014, to elect the 36 U.S. representatives from the state of Texas, one from each of the state's 36 congressional districts. The elections coin ...
*
2014 United States Senate election in Texas The 2014 United States Senate election in Texas was held on November 4, 2014, to elect a member of the United States Senate. Incumbent Republican senator and Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn ran for re-election to a third term. Primary electio ...
* 2014 Texas elections


References


External links


Texas gubernatorial election, 2014
at
Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Burn ...

Greg Abbott for Governor

Wendy Davis for Governor

Kathie Glass for Governor

Lisa Fritsch for Governor

Larry Kilgore for Governor

Miriam Martinez for Governor

R. Lee Wrights for Governor

Gene Chapman for Governor
{{DEFAULTSORT:Texas Gubernatorial Election, 2014 2014 Texas elections
2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...
2014 United States gubernatorial elections