A watchdog group accused Texas State University of an "egregious" breach of the First Amendment over a paid advertisement. Campus officials said running the ad violated the university's ban on electioneering inside campus buildings.
The University Star reported that Hinojosa's campaign bought ads through the same college media buyer at four other public Texas universities, including UT El Paso, Texas A&M, the University of Houston and UT Dallas, without issue.
Texas State has faced other free speech complaints. Faculty members Thomas Alter and Idris Robinson sued the school this year, alleging they were unfairly fired for expressing political beliefs off campus. Those firings were among the factors FIRE cited when it ranked Texas State the worst college for free speech in its 2027 College Free Speech report. FIRE President Greg Lukianoff said colleges need to meet their constitutional obligations.