Houston businessman Andrew White on Monday dropped his Democratic bid for governor and endorsed state Rep. Gina Hinojosa to take on Gov. Greg Abbott in November.
“With the primary just weeks away, the responsible choice is to come together to defeat Greg Abbott and protect our schools, hospitals and infrastructure,” White said in a statement. “I’m proud to endorse Gina Hinojosa for governor, and I look forward to voting for her twice: once in March and again in November.”
White, the son of former Texas Gov. Mark White, had pledged to run as an independent-minded Democrat and unite Texans across the political spectrum. His departure leaves Hinojosa, former U.S. Rep. Chris Bell and retired firefighter and rancher Bobby Cole in the race, among others. It also marks White’s second unsuccessful run for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, after he lost in a runoff in 2018.
White said in a video on social media that his campaign hadn’t raised enough money to be successful, despite internal polling placing him second in the nine-person race. He had pledged to personally cover the overhead expenses of his campaign.
“Instead of fighting this fight against Gina, I think it’s better for me to step aside and Gina save her resources so she can beat Greg Abbott in November,” he said.
Public polling by Texas Southern University from mid-December found that 41% of likely Democratic primary voters planned to support Hinojosa, with 6% going for White, 5% for Bell and 6% for other candidates.
Hinojosa said in a statement that she was “incredibly grateful to Andrew White for his leadership and for this show of support.”
“It takes incredible courage to enter the ring and run for statewide office in Texas, and it takes even more to step down when you know what’s at stake,” Hinojosa said.
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
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