Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa is a Democratic member of the Texas State Senate representing District 20, which spans parts of South Texas from Corpus Christi to McAllen, including counties like Brooks, Hidalgo , and Jim Wells. Born on March 7, 1946, in McAllen, Texas, he is the eldest of eight children and has served in the Texas Legislature for over 35 years. A veteran who served with distinction as a squad leader in the United States Marines during Vietnam , Hinojosa is an attorney with a private practice in Hidalgo County since 1980. Notable achievements include authoring the Texas Fair Defense Act to reform court-appointed counsel for indigent defendants, sponsoring DNA testing legislation that exonerated wrongfully convicted individuals, eliminating rogue drug task forces after the Tulia scandal, reforming the Texas Youth Commission amid abuse scandals, and championing higher education initiatives like the creation of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and its School of Medicine via SB 24 in 2013, as well as establishing the Regional Academic Health Center . He currently serves as Vice Chair of the Senate Finance Committee and holds positions on committees including Border Security, Criminal Justice, Jurisprudence, and Transportation.

Education

Hinojosa earned a bachelor's degree in political science with honors from the University of Texas-Pan American in 1970. He later obtained a law degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

Political Experience

• Texas House of Representatives: 1981-1990 and 1997-2002 .
• Texas State Senate, District 20: 2003-present . Key roles: President Pro Tempore ; Chairman of Criminal Jurisprudence; member of various committees including Finance , Administration , and oversight bodies like the TYC Legislative Oversight Committee. Prior legal roles: Staff attorney for Legal Aid Society of Nueces County; Assistant Attorney General for Texas .