Greg Abbott facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Greg Abbott
Official portrait, 2024
48th Governor of Texas
Incumbent
Assumed office January 20, 2015
Lieutenant	Dan Patrick
Preceded by	Rick Perry
Chair of the Republican Governors Association
In office November 21, 2019 – December 9, 2020
Preceded by	Pete Ricketts
Succeeded by	Doug Ducey
50th Attorney General of Texas
In office December 2, 2002 – January 5, 2015
Governor	Rick Perry
Preceded by	John Cornyn
Succeeded by	Ken Paxton
Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas
In office January 2, 1996 – June 6, 2001
Appointed by	George W. Bush
Preceded by	Jack Hightower
Succeeded by	Xavier Rodriguez
Personal details
Born	Gregory Wayne Abbott (1957-11-13) November 13, 1957 (age 66) Wichita Falls, Texas, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Cecilia Phalen ​ (m. 1981)​
Children	1
Residence	Governor's Mansion
Education	University of Texas at Austin (BBA) Vanderbilt University (JD)
Signature

Gregory Wayne Abbott (born November 13, 1957) is an American politician serving as the 48th governor of Texas since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 50th attorney general of Texas from 2002 to 2015 and as a justice of the Texas Supreme Court from 1996 to 2001.

Early life and education

Abbott was born on November 13, 1957, in Wichita Falls, Texas, of English descent. His mother, Doris Lechristia Jacks Abbott, was a housewife and his father, Calvin Rodger Abbott, was a stockbroker and insurance agent. When he was six years old, they moved to Longview; the family lived there for six years. When he was 12, Abbott's family moved to Duncanville. In his sophomore year in high school, his father died of a heart attack; his mother went to work in a real estate office. Abbott graduated from Duncanville High School.

In 1981, Abbott earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance from the University of Texas at Austin. He met his wife, Cecilia Phalen, while attending UT Austin. The two married in 1981. In 1984, he earned his Juris Doctor degree from the Vanderbilt University Law School.

Legal career

Abbott went into private practice, working for Butler and Binion, LLP between 1984 and 1992.

Judicial career

Abbott's judicial career began in Houston, where he served as a state trial judge in the 129th District Court for three years. Then-Governor George W. Bush appointed Abbott to the Texas Supreme Court; he was then twice elected to the state's highest civil court—in 1996 (two-year term) and in 1998 (six-year term). In 1996, Abbott had no Democratic opponent but was challenged by Libertarian John B. Hawley of Dallas. Abbott defeated Hawley, 84% to 16%. In 1998, Abbott defeated Democrat David Van Os, 60% to 40%.

In 2001, after resigning from the Supreme Court, Abbott returned to private practice and worked for Bracewell & Giuliani LLC. He was also an adjunct professor at University of Texas School of Law.

Attorney General of Texas (2002–2015)

Greg Abbott talks about the Harriet Miers nomination with President George W. Bush and former Texas Supreme Court Justices in 2005. From left: Eugene Cook, Raul Gonzalez, Abbott, John Hill, James Baker, Bush, and Craig Enoch

Abbott and John Cornyn highlight Crime Stoppers Month in San Antonio, 2008

Abbott resigned from the Texas Supreme Court in 2001 to run for lieutenant governor of Texas. He had been campaigning for several months when the previous attorney general, John Cornyn, vacated the post to run for the U.S. Senate. Abbott then switched his campaign to the open attorney general's position in 2002. He defeated the Democratic nominee, former Austin mayor and former state senator Kirk Watson, 57% to 41%. Abbott was sworn in on December 2, 2002, following Cornyn's election to the Senate.

During his tenure, Abbott expanded the attorney general's office's law enforcement division from about 30 people to more than 100.

In March 2005, Abbott delivered oral argument before the United States Supreme Court on behalf of Texas, defending a Ten Commandments monument on grounds of the Texas State Capitol. Thousands of similar monuments were donated to cities and towns across the nation by the Fraternal Order of Eagles, who were inspired by the Cecil B. DeMille film The Ten Commandments (1956) in following years. In his deposition, Abbott said, "The Ten Commandments are a historically recognized system of law." The Supreme Court held in a 5–4 decision that the Texas display did not violate the First Amendment's Establishment Clause and was constitutional. After Abbott's oral arguments in Van Orden v. Perry, Justice John Paul Stevens commented upon Abbott's performance while in a wheelchair, "I want to thank you [...] for demonstrating that it's not necessary to stand at the lectern in order to do a fine job."

Tenure as governor (2015–present)

Abbott speaking at the 2016 World Travel and Tourism Council conference

Abbott was sworn in as governor of Texas on January 20, 2015, succeeding Rick Perry. He is the first governor of Texas and the third elected governor of a U.S. state to use a wheelchair, after Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York (1929–1932) and George Wallace of Alabama (1963–1967, 1971–1979; 1983–1987).

Abbott's book Broken But Unbowed (2016) recounted Abbott's personal story and views on politics.

Firearms

In 2015, Abbott signed the campus carry (SB 11) and the open carry (HB 910) bills into law. The campus carry law came into effect later that year, allowing licensed carrying of a concealed handgun on public college campuses, with private colleges able to opt out. The open carry bill went into effect in 2016, allowing the licensed open carrying of handguns in public areas and private businesses that do not display a 30.07 sign. The 30.07 sign (referring to state penal code 30.07) states that a handgun may not be carried openly even by a licensed gun carrier. To do so openly is considered trespassing. Texas is the 45th state to have open carry. In 2017, Abbott signed into law a bill lowering handgun carry license fees. In 2021, he signed into law a bill that allowed Texans to carry guns without a license.

Immigration and border security

Abbott and Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly in a helicopter touring the Mexico–United States border in 2017.

In June 2015, Abbott signed a bill bolstering Texas's border security operations, including hiring additional state police, expanding the use of technology, and creating intelligence operations units.

In 2021, Abbott referred to undocumented immigrants crossing the border as an "invasion".

In June 2021, Abbott ordered Texas child-care regulators to take the licenses of child-care facilities that housed unaccompanied migrant minors. He said that housing unaccompanied minors in child-care facilities had a negative impact on facilities housing Texan children in foster care. Later that month, he announced plans to build a border wall with Mexico, saying that the state would provide $250 million and that direct donations from the public would be solicited.

In July 2021, Abbott advised state law enforcement officers to begin arresting illegal migrants for trespassing. On July 27, 2021, he ordered the National Guard to begin helping arrest migrants, and the next day he signed an order to restrict the ground transportation of migrants. Migrants arrested under Abbott's policy were imprisoned for weeks without legal help or formal charges. By December 2023, nearly 10,000 migrants had been arrested on trespassing charges.

In June 2023, Abbott deployed floating barriers in the Rio Grande in an effort to deter illegal border crossings. The U.S. Justice Department sued Abbott and the state of Texas after Abbott refused to remove the barriers.

In December 2023, Abbott signed three border-security-related bills into law, including a bill making illegal immigration a state crime.

Environment

Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, India's Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship in a meeting with Governor Abbott, in 2018.

As of 2018^[update], Abbott rejects the scientific consensus on climate change. He has said that the climate is changing, but does not accept the consensus that human activity is the main reason.

LGBT rights

In 2014, Abbott defended Texas's ban on same-sex marriage, which a federal court ruled unconstitutional. In 2017, Abbott signed legislation to allow taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to refuse same-sex families from adopting children for religious reasons.

Homelessness

In June 2019, the city of Austin introduced an ordinance that repealed a 25-year-old ban on homeless people camping, lying, or sleeping in public. In October 2019, Abbott sent a widely publicized letter to Austin Mayor Steve Adler criticizing the camping ban repeal and threatened to deploy state resources to combat homelessness.

In November 2019, Abbott directed the State of Texas to open a temporary homeless encampment on a former vehicle storage yard owned by the Texas Department of Transportation, which camp residents dubbed "Abbottville".

College diversity, equity, and inclusion

In the summer of 2023, Abbott signed into law Senate Bill 17, which prohibits Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices at Texas's public colleges and universities.

The bill, passed largely along party lines, garnered both support and criticism, with proponents arguing it would save taxpayer funds and promote a merit-based approach to education and critics expressing concern about discrimination and hindrance to diversity efforts.

Personal life

Greg Abbott (far right) and Cecilia Abbott (far left) with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump

Abbott, a Catholic, is married to Cecilia Phalen Abbott, the granddaughter of Mexican immigrants. They were married in San Antonio in 1981. His election as governor of Texas made her the first Latina to be First Lady of Texas since Texas joined the union. They have one adopted daughter, Audrey. Cecilia is a former schoolteacher and principal.

Wheelchair use

On July 14, 1984, at age 26, Abbott was paralyzed below the waist when an oak tree fell on him while he was jogging after a storm. Two steel rods were implanted in his spine, and he underwent extensive rehabilitation at TIRR Memorial Hermann in Houston and has used a wheelchair ever since.

Electoral history

On November 4, 2014, Abbott defeated Wendy Davis by 20 points in the Texas gubernatorial election. According to exit polls, he received 44% of the Hispanic vote and 50% of Hispanic men, a majority (54%) of female voters, and 62% of the votes of married women (75% of women in Texas are married).

2022

2018

2014

2010

2006

2002

1998

Images for kids

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  Abbott speaking with President Donald Trump and members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force in the Oval Office

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  Abbott and President Joe Biden at the Harris County Emergency Operations Center in 2021

See also

In Spanish: Greg Abbott para niños