Gina Hinojosa, Democratic nominee for Texas Governor, announces she’s filed a lawsuit requesting access to inspect unredacted communications involving Gov. Greg Abbott’s office and Elon Musk’s companies based in the state. (Blaise Gainey | The Texas Newsroom)

State Rep. Gina Hinojosa is suing Gov. Greg Abbott’s office for access to unredacted emails involving Elon Musk and his companies.

The Democratic nominee for Texas governor announced the lawsuit Monday, just hours after polls opened for the state’s first day of early voting.

“I have voted and I have also filed a lawsuit today to obtain the documents,” Hinojosa said at an event in Austin.

As a state lawmaker, Hinojosa maintains she’s entitled to see the communications between Gov. Abbott and the world’s richest man, whose companies have a significant footprint in Texas.

Hinojosa, who represents an Austin-area district in the Texas House, said she was denied access to the records after requesting to view them on Sept. 29.

“In light of the growing power of tech CEOs in Texas and the close working relationship between government and the corporate tech industry, transparency is essential for accountability,” the Democrat said at the time.

Hinojosa’s initial request and new lawsuit point to The Texas Newsroom’s 2025 reporting on Abbott’s efforts to keep the communications private.

Last summer, Abbott’s office cited privacy protections and other exceptions to the state’s public records law, adding that releasing them “would have a chilling effect on the frank and open discussion necessary for the decision-making process.”

In November 2025, Abbott’s office released nearly 1,400 pages to The Texas Newsroom. All but about 200 pages of the records were entirely blacked out, while many of the readable documents were already publicly available or revealed little about Musk’s dealings with state government.

Hinojosa’s lawsuit also cites a possible sale of Boca Chica State Park to Musk’s SpaceX. The company’s launch site neighbors the Brownsville-area park.

Last week, Texas Monthly reported that the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission was discussing a possible sale of the property. Responding to the magazine, the agency said the sale would not be considered at its upcoming November meeting.

“Like so many families in the Valley, I spent my summers at Boca Chica Beach,” Hinojosa said in an Oct. 17 statement criticizing the discussions.

Abbott, who is seeking a historic fourth term as governor, started stepping up his attacks on Hinojosa last month as many public polls showed the race tightening between the Republican incumbent and his Democratic challenger.

Gov. Abbott’s campaign announced Monday that he had cast his early ballot in Del Valle. The governor also dismissed Hinojosa’s lawsuit as “another act of desperation,” the Houston Chronicle reported.

Early voting continues through Oct. 30 and Election Day is Nov. 3.