Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear hoped serving as chairman of the Democratic Governors Association in this year’s midterms would improve his profile and connections ahead of his planned 2028 presidential run.
But it also created an opening to increase pressure on him, with frustrations coming to light this week as several Texas Democratic congressmen and national group leaders accused him of putting his book tour and potential 2028 activities ahead of helping Democratic candidate Gina Hinojosa win the Texas gubernatorial race.
The problem is that national money is being poured into Hinojosa’s underfunded and downtrodden race against Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, once considered nearly unbeatable. The latest New York Times/Siena poll finds no clear leader in the race, with Hinojosa ahead by four points, within the margin of sampling error.
Hinojosa and his allies began by asking Beshear and the Democratic Governors Association for $10 million, but they have since downgraded their request to $3 million. Only this week did the DGA announce plans to invest $1 million in the race, with the possibility, but no promise, of adding more.
“He just felt like he didn’t take Latinos seriously, and they didn’t take Latinos seriously as a voting bloc within the Democratic Party,” Texas Rep. Sylvia Garcia said of Beshear. “And if that’s the case, then he’s going to have a Latino problem in 2028.”
Beshear’s aides aren’t just dismissing the accusations; They bristle at what they see as an unfair attempt to publicly humiliate Beshear, with one person familiar with the DGA’s internal conversations telling CNN that their polls have Hinojosa down by 5 points — even as another person familiar with the matter says the campaign’s own polls put it within the margin of error.
“It’s a tough argument that money should go there when many other candidates are tied or ahead in states that are much cheaper than Texas,” the person familiar with the DGA conversations told CNN.
But what’s happening isn’t just about Beshear or Texas. These are Latin American leaders testing how they can and will wield the political influence of one of the country’s most important but often overlooked voting blocs, and this year is proving to be one of its most dynamic.
“We can’t just think about how important this race is in today’s context, but what it will mean, could and should mean for 2028,” Rep. Veronica Escobar said during a Zoom meeting with DGA officials that Beshear was not present for. Escobar argued that a Hinojosa victory would signal that Texas — which has 40 electoral votes — can be competitive in a presidential election for the first time in decades.
On the call, DGA Executive Director Meghan Meehan-Draper repeatedly said the organization believed in Hinojosa’s campaign, blaming the vagaries of campaign finance law and limited funds nationally for not investing more in Texas. Even if these two statements are true, the DGA is also working on its own surveys, which explains its hesitation.
“Your mishandling of this situation and your complete lack of respect for us has been absolutely astonishing,” said Jess Morales Rocketto, president and CEO of the Latino group Maremoto, when asked to speak.
Juan Proaño, president and CEO of the League of United Latin American Citizens, said he was surprised by the tone of what he heard on the call. Beshear, Proaño told CNN, is “doing the best he can given the environment we’re in,” adding that he’s pleased with the governor’s broader outreach to Latinos so far.
Of the DGA officials on the call, Proaño said, “I take them at their word that they will try to do more, but I’m also realistic about the constraints that exist, which are much broader than Texas. »
Beshear, through his aides, declined an interview request. His aides provided a statement from New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, the country’s only current Latino governor, calling for avoiding infighting.
“I have worked closely with Governor Beshear, Democratic governors and the DGA to invest in Hispanic communities across the country and raise funds so Gina’s campaign can deliver her message to voters,” said Lujan Grisham.
Tom Perez told CNN he remembers conversations like these when he was chairman of the Democratic National Committee during the 2018 midterms.
“While someone was running a party committee in a good year, we had a size 12 opportunity set in 2018 and we had a size 10 budget,” Perez said. “I think there’s a size 14 opportunity set in the 2026 gubernatorial race, and they’re doing their best to spread the wealth.”
Perez, who is of Dominican descent, said Beshear’s work as governor with Latinos in rural Kentucky communities and in Louisville counters the political accusations being made now: “His record speaks for itself.” »
The DGA defends itself – and gets a helping hand from JB Pritzker
A DGA aide pointed to investments exceeding $1 million in Texas to pay for some expenses and field personnel, as well as the $25,000 Beshear contributed to the Hinojosa campaign through his own PAC. The aide also pointed out that DGA money was flowing into gubernatorial races in Arizona and Nevada, largely focused on Latino and Spanish-speaking voters.
Those two races — with Arizona’s Democratic governor seeking a second term and Democrats trying to unseat the first-term Republican incumbent in Nevada — currently appear more in play for the DGA than Texas.
The DGA official also noted that Beshear had previously called national donors to try to get more money to Texas, but was told no. In a call last week directly with Hinojosa, Beshear said the money was short, but he was going to find him $1 million.
On the call, several offered to provide Beshear with the names of donors with whom they had discussed raising additional funds for Texas. A Beshear aide offered to bring the list to the governor, but made no commitment that he would make the calls. So far, however, no one on the call has provided any of those names.
Beshear managed to enlist one of the organization’s most trusted billionaire donors, who also happens to be the governor of Illinois — and who also happens to be taking steps to run for president in 2028: JB Pritzker.
Beshear had a phone call with Pritzker asking for more money, in which the Illinois governor then pledged another $1 million, according to a person familiar with the call.
Although that money was not earmarked for Texas, he put the same amount of money in the DGA pot that Beshear then sent to Texas — and which Pritzker then essentially doubled by announcing he was personally giving $1.2 million to Hinojosa.
“This race is winnable — it’s time for the cavalry,” Pritzker said on a call with some of the same Latino House members from Texas earlier this week, informing them of his direct donation.
That’s still less than the $5 million Pritzker gave the DGA in the 2022 cycle, partly reflecting his eagerness for the organization to be more aggressive in its response to Trump’s second term.
A sharp national shift among Latino voters away from Trump and better-than-expected poll numbers from Hinojosa and Senate candidate James Talarico have fueled the Lone Star State’s dreams of new victories in 2026 and 2028 — at the local and district levels as well as the state and national levels.
The past two years, during which many people felt targeted by Trump, have made Hinojosa supporters more invested in his candidacy.
“Gina is what is releasing the hatred that our entire community feels nationally,” Alida Garcia of the group Twin Impact said near the end of the call, becoming emotional. “Texas sets the tone for how bad we are, our community is treated everywhere else in the country, so Gina’s presence changes the entire tone for us.”
Hinojosa’s campaign remains diplomatic as the start of early voting approaches, with a spokeswoman telling CNN she appreciates all the help provided so far.
“We are grateful for the support we have received in this final stretch from leaders across the country, and especially from Texans who are ready for change after 12 years of Greg Abbott,” said Tommy Kubitschek, a spokesman for Hinojosa’s campaign.
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