Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa’s November 3, 2026, victory over Greg Abbott has become the dominant driver of trader sentiment on a Texas data center moratorium. Hinojosa pledged during the campaign to issue an executive ban on new approvals until the legislature enacts protections for water supplies, electricity rates, union labor, and community input, criticizing Abbott’s measures as insufficient. Abbott had already directed ERCOT to audit roughly 474 GW of interconnection requests—nearly all data centers—and halted new TCEQ environmental permits until the review concludes around December 10. With the Democratic-controlled House and Hinojosa’s January 19 inauguration, the existing pause is widely expected to extend into the 2027 legislative session, raising the odds of formal rules that could delay or condition projects representing a large share of planned U.S. capacity.