The General Land Office oversees investments that earn billions of dollars for public education, manages state lands, operates the Alamo and administers disaster recovery funds and benefits to Texas veterans. Here’s a look at who’s running in the 2026 race and where they stand.
Alejandra Martinez
Alejandra Martinez is a Fort Worth-based environmental reporter. She’s covered the impacts of petrochemical facilities on Black and brown communities, including investigating a chemical fire at an industrial complex and how the state's air monitoring system has failed Latino communities. Her work on climate change includes exploring the health effects of extreme heat and how extended droughts affect water resources. Before joining the Tribune in 2022, Alejandra was an accountability reporter at KERA, where she began as a Report for America Corps Member and then covered Dallas City Hall. She also has worked as an associate producer at WLRN in South Florida. A Houston native, Alejandra studied journalism at the University of Texas at Austin and speaks fluent Spanish.
Posted in
Environment
Fire crews fully contains North Texas wildfire, which continues to burn three weeks later
The fire has burned 90,000 acres, making it the second largest fire in the region’s history.
Posted in
Data Centers in Texas
Gov. Greg Abbott orders Texas water agency to penalize data centers that don’t report their water usage
Last year, less than 30% of data centers responded to a state-mandated water usage survey conducted by the Texas Water Development Board.
Posted in
Environment
Rain drops needed relief on North Texas wildfire that’s been burning for two weeks
Storms swept over the more than 90,400 acres still burning in Palo Pinto and Jack counties. Containment increased to 76%, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.
Posted in
Environment
How Corpus Christi’s water emergency exposed flaws in Texas’ water planning
State water planners don’t use climate projections when they plan for future water supply. Experts say they should model for more extreme droughts rather than relying on historical data.
Posted in
Data Centers in Texas
Here’s how to find information about data centers in Texas
What information is accessible about a data center project can differ from place to place and depend on whether a project seeks out tax breaks, whether it needs local rezoning or special permits, and how it will get its power and water.
Posted in
Energy
Data center approvals in Texas halted until audits completed, Gov. Greg Abbott says
On Monday, the governor ordered the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas to audit all data centers wanting to connect to the state’s power grid.
Posted in
Environment
Floodwater delays Corpus Christi’s water emergency until fall 2028
A prolonged drought had put the Coastal Bend city months away from running short of water, but upstream storms have improved the outlook.
Posted in
Environment
Floodwater starts arriving in Corpus Christi reservoirs, sparking hope for a water crisis delay
Choke Canyon has almost doubled its supply of water this week, although the reservoir is still at 15% capacity.
Posted in
Environment
As flooded Texas towns recover, downstream river levels haven’t yet peaked
While Gov. Greg Abbott declared “the worst of the rain is behind us,” he cautioned that rivers in the hardest-hit counties still pose a danger.
