Montserrat Garibay

Montserrat Garibay
Garibay in 2018
Member-elect of the Texas House of Representatives
from the 49th district
Assuming office
January 2027
SucceedingGina Hinojosa
Personal details
Born
Mexico City, Mexico
PartyDemocratic
Education
WebsiteCampaign website

Montserrat Garibay is a Mexican-born American politician and labor organizer. A member of the Democratic party, she was elected to the Texas House of Representatives for the 49th district in the 2026 election to replace Gina Hinojosa.

Early life and education

Garibay was born in Mexico City and came to the United States fleeing family violence with her mother and sister as an undocumented child in 1992. She attended Murchison Middle School and Anderson High School in the Austin Independent School District. She completed her general coursework at Austin Community College and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Science, a Bachelor of Arts, and a Master of Education.

Career

Garibay was a superdelegate for Hillary Clinton at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. She worked as a bilingual pre-kindergarten teacher at Lucy Read Pre-K Demonstration School in the Austin Independent School District and was on the executive board of Education Austin before she became the secretary-treasurer of the Texas AFL-CIO. In 2021, Garibay was named the senior liaison for labor relations in the office of the secretary at the United States Department of Education.

Texas House of Representatives

Garibay entered the race for Texas's 49th House of Representatives district to succeed Gina Hinojosa. She received the most votes in the Democratic party primary election and advanced to a runoff election against Kathie Tovo, a former Austin City Councilwoman. Garibay defeated Tovo in the runoff election and won the general election against the Green party candidate and University of Texas at Austin student Arshia Papari.

Personal life

Garibay became an American citizen in 2012.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Montserrat Garibay". Center for Applied Linguistics. Retrieved November 4, 2026.
  2. 1 2 Rodriguez, Juan (February 4, 2019). "Austin woman on list of 'potential illegal voters' sues Texas officials". KVUE.
  3. ↑ Bingamon, Brant; Ellett, Joe; Seamon, Sammie (February 5, 2026). "Musical Chairs at the Texas House of Representatives". The Austin Chronicle.
  4. ↑ Bingamon, Brant (April 30, 2026). "The Last Two Standing to Represent the City's Core". The Austin Chronicle.
  5. ↑ Sifuentes, Mia Valeria; Martinez Rodriguez, Valery (September 4, 2026). "Montserrat runs for District 49". The Daily Texan.
  6. 1 2 "Alumna Named Senior Liaison in the Department of Education". University of Texas at Austin. April 1, 2021. Archived from the original on August 4, 2021.
  7. ↑ Livingston, Abby (April 21, 2016). "Sanders Effort to Flip Clinton Superdelegates Likely to Stall in Texas". The Texas Tribune.
  8. ↑ "Montserrat Garibay". Texas State Teachers Association. Retrieved November 4, 2026.
  9. 1 2 Bova, Gus (May 18, 2021). "Texas Labor Organizer Montserrat Garibay Goes to Washington". The Texas Observer.
  10. ↑ "Union Leader Montserrat Garibay Advances to General Election for Texas House District 49". Austin Labor Council. May 27, 2026.
  11. ↑ Sanders, Austin; Tong, Chaya (October 27, 2025). "Former Austin council member Kathie Tovo joins crowded race for Texas House seat". Houston Chronicle.
  12. ↑ Weber, Andrew (May 18, 2026). "Austin voters will choose between Montserrat Garibay, Kathie Tovo to take over House District 49". KUT.
  13. ↑ Weber, Andrew (May 26, 2026). "Montserrat Garibay beats Kathie Tovo to represent Austin's House District 49". KUT.
  14. ↑ Velasquez Neira, Gabriel (October 19, 2026). "Longtime education advocate faces UT Austin student in bid for Texas House District 49 seat". KUT.
  15. ↑ "Montserrat Garibay". Ballotpedia. Retrieved November 5, 2026.