Rene Cross of the University of Houstons Hobby School of Public Affairs, though, said Abbotts most vulnerable to a test by a younger Democrat such as ORourke or the Castro brothers of San Antonio, Julin and Joaquin. How much have the candidates raised so far? The PUC has largely avoided blame for last weeks power issues, so far, despite providing oversight to ERCOT. These generous contributions from people all across Texas show just how excited Texans are for this campaign, Abbott said in a statement. Im grateful for everyone who helped us raise $27.63 million in just over four months as we support the powerful work of our organizers and more than 78,000 volunteers, O'Rourke said in the release. All rights reserved. The top California donors in the Texas governor's race, How the biggest Republican stronghold in Texas could cost Gov. Critics said this and other storm response bills spearheaded by these lawmakers also failed to provide direct assistance to people harmed by Februarys power crisis or to help Texans reduce electricity use to take pressure off the grid during extreme weather. For his part, Patrick has been pushing the states politics to the rightsince his days as a talk radio host in Houston. With this tracker, The Express-News is providing continuously updated information on political contributions for the Nov. 8, 2022, elections, along with lists of top donors by name and by industry for statewide candidates for governor, attorney general, and lieutenant governor. Beto O'Rourke out-raises Greg Abbott in campaign contributions The Past 30 Days column represents the last 30 days of donations, starting with the date of the most recent contribution for that race. A Schwertner spokesperson did not respond to questions for this story. 4 min read. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. After the Defenders reached out to Cobos seeking comment Tuesday, Jon Oliver, an OPUC spokesperson, called back and said he was unaware of any campaign contributions made to Abbott. Other ERCOT board members are listed in TEC records as having contributed to several energy-related PACs. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Governor Patrick, who moved immediately following the February storm to call for the resignations of both the PUC board and ERCOT, both of which were fully reformed through Senate Bills 2 and 3.. O'Rourke's campaign reported Tuesday having raised $25.18 million over the most recent reporting period from July 1 through Sept. 29. The data is from the period between Jan. 1, 2021, and Oct. 29, 2022. I wouldnt count him out., Last fall, Abbott gave money and shared his campaigns detailed voter information database with GOP hopefuls in several of the key Texas House contests. by Carla Astudillo, Caroline Covington and Eric Lau Cobos was appointed chief executive and public counsel of the Office of Public Utility Counsel (OPUC) by Abbott in March 2019, three months after donating $1,050 to Abbotts campaign, state contribution records show. Greg Abbott hauled in nearly $19 million over the last nine days of June and boasted an eye-popping $55 million in the bank as he prepares to . Schwertner went from receiving 3% of his overall campaign contributions from the energy industry in the fundraising period after the 2015 legislative session to the industry making up about 32% of . Energy officials have repeatedly said that the states natural gas supply was also hindered by the storm, in large part because energy plants did not have properly winterized equipment. We dont take anything for granted, he said. Of the $44.8 million already reported in the 2022 election cycle, 21.9 percent came from the top 10 donors. While former Gov. Through Nov. 30, even with federal fundraising constraints, Crenshaw in the last two-year cycle raised a whopping $19 million. website. A number of factors, including whether an incumbent officeholder is running for reelection, influence donor activity. Dave Carney, Abbotts political strategist, said the governor is unperturbed by the volatile national political environment. ORourke received about 391,496 individual donations from outside the state, while Abbott received roughly 109,493. Abbott compares to the 10 other governors with campaign finance data available from Transparency USA in 2022: The data above are based on campaign finance reports that active Texas PACs submitted to the Texas Ethics Commission. ALBANY - Gov. why: Summary numbers for federal officeholders - specifically "Total Raised and Spent" and "PAC/Individual Split" - are A spokesperson for Oncor said the company believes in actively participating in the political process. CenterPoint said: In this case, CenterPoint Energy Political Action Committee made public contributions to support members of the Texas Legislature who had announced their intention to run for re-election, regardless of party affiliation. A Calpine representative said its CEO, who made up the bulk of contributions tied to the company, donated money as he develops relationships with these members directly. The other two companies did not respond to requests for comment. The. February winter storm: Campaign donations poured in after reform - WFAA AUSTIN Heading into the 2022 campaign season, Gov. A 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, charitable organization, 1100 13th Street, NW, Suite 800 We do this in two ways: It is impossible to know either the economic interest that made each individual contribution possible or the Other billionaires with major oil and gas interests who are backing Abbott include Nancy Kinder, the wife of Kinder Morgan cofounder Richard Kinder; Hilcorp cofounder Jeff Hildebrand; Chief Oil & Gas founder Trevor Rees-Jones; Hunt Oil heir Ray Lee Hunt and Western Refining founder Paul Foster, who Abbott appointed to run the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission in April last year. Except for the Revolving Door section, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License by OpenSecrets.org. The other organizations on the list include law firms, teachers groups and liberal political action committees. Of all the statewide elections in Texas, the attorney generals race is expected to be the most competitive. Abbott, who has held a commanding lead in cash on hand during the race, touts $46 million in his campaign coffers. Warren's company Energy Transfer declined to comment on his behalf. Is Dallas becoming unaffordable due to rising housing costs, inflation and stagnating pay? Dan Patrick, who has differences with Abbott, has never completely died out. Warren has given Abbott $250,000 donations almost every year since he won the governors office in 2014. Data for Usually, state candidates in Texas get the majority of their donations from Texans. Tuesday marks the deadline for candidates to file campaign finance reports with the Texas Ethics Commission detailing fundraising and spending from July through December. This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Kolten Parker, Digital Executive Producer. Corporations themselves cannot donate to candidates at the federal level but federal candidates can get contributions from corporate PACs, employees and owners as well as their immediate families. As he preps for 2022, Abbott may steal a page from U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, who last year tried to hold on to fervent Trump supporters while appealing to more moderate swing voters in the suburbs. state officeholders may be subject to longer time lags, as OpenSecrets aggregates this information from many sources Dozens of donations in quantities like $100,000, $50,000, and $25,000 and page after page of $10,000 donations poured in over the course of the election cycle from individuals and PACs alike. Contributors 2022 $71,842,556 grand total of contributions Greg Abbott has reported in 2022 Number of Contributions from Individuals (above itemization threshold): 292,180 Top: 20 Top 20 Contributors to Campaign Committee Export to CSV Showing 1 to 20 of 20 entries Just before the energy donations poured in for Abbott in June, the power grid operator asked Texans, mid-heat wave, to conserve power and turn their thermostats to 78 degrees for a week in order to reduce electricity demand because significant power generation was unexpectedly offline. Crenshaw, 36, is almost as renowned a fundraiser as Abbott, 63. Texas Governor Greg Abbott's 2019 reelection inaugural was a 2-day event that included balls, candlelight dinners, barbecues and other VIP events -- costing some $5.3 million for the celebrations. In fact, Abbott's campaign said he has raised $95 million this election season. We will secure the future of Texas." Email * Zip Code * While summary numbers are reported almost immediately by the But to build a better future for every Texan, I need your help. But none has reaped campaign contributions on the scale of Abbott, who in six years in office has raised more than $150 million from donors, more than any governor in U.S. history. Connect with needs and opportunities from. Of the donors, O'Rourke's campaign said 98% of the donations were received online and that teachers contributed more than any other occupation. Four out of the top 10 individual donors to Abbott are oil and gas men. Abbott is tending to home state business, he noted. Im grateful for everyone who helped raise $25.18 million in just three months as we support the work of our organizers and record-breaking 100,000 volunteers, said ORourke. Democrat Mike Collier gets his rematch with incumbent Lt. Gov. Separate from discussion of the virus outbreak, some have wondered whether Houston-area GOP congressman Dan Crenshaw, whos seen nationally as a Republican comer, might jump into a race against Abbott. The O'Rourke campaign said nearly all of the more than 511,000 contributions to the campaign, at an average of $54, came from online donors and that teachers contributed more than people from any other occupation. interest group. Learn more about our work here. Democratic gubernatorial challenger Beto O'Rourke raised $27.3 million from Feb. 20 to June 30, while Republican Gov. Gov. The leading two candidates for Texas governor each pulled in about $25 million in campaign contributions during the summer, with a slight edge going to Democratic challenger Beto O'Rourke who reported 10 times as many donors. As Texas voters go to the polls next week, it is clear which candidate billionaires are backing in the . Abbotts biggest individual donors have always come from the energy industry, and this time is no exception, with energy tycoons making up 40% of his top 10 donors. Texas Ethics Commission records, however, show that three of the 13 representatives on the House Committee on State Affairs have accepted contributions from ERCOT board member Clifton Karnei. In 2021, the Abbott campaign had out-raised the O'Rourke campaign since the start of their respective campaigns. The Republican governor raised 26% more in last years final six months than the $9.1 million he raised in late 2016 the comparable period in his first term. Visit us at Ballotpedia.org, or follow us on Facebook and Twitter. In addition, Abbott has received donations from deep-pocketed donors in the real estate industry like Edward Roski Jr., president of Majestic Realty in California, who gave $1.5 million, as well as three donations of $1 million each from supporters in finance and casinos. Absent that storm, his contributions would have been different, said Bill Miller, a longtime Texas political consultant and lobbyist. Both are from Dallas. Dan Patrick pressured Abbott in public statements that issues related to the grid needed to be on the agenda. Carney said Abbott spent $6.1 million to help down-ballot Republicans. Dan Patrick, after coming within 5 percentage points of the incumbent in 2018. Aug. 4, 20215 AM Central. based on summary reports filed by the candidates with the Federal Election Commission. The twisted roots between the oil and gas industry and Texas lawmakers is almost as old as the Capitol building itself, said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston. He said the latest contributions of $25 million came from nearly 475,000 donors, making the average contribution $53. Board member Mark Carpenter, a senior vice president with Dallas-based Oncor Electric Delivery, has contributed $10,000 to Texans for Greg Abbott, Abbotts campaign war chest, since October 2018. However, Abbott has been a prolific fundraiser for years, which gave him the upper hand earlier in the race. Beto O'Rourke announces he's running for governor of Texas. The O'Rourke campaign has not yet released how much cash on hand it has. In Texas, Gov. If, for instance, Henry Jones lists his employer as First National The warnings led to renewed calls for the Legislature to take more urgent action to fix the power grid. Abbott, other Texas politicians got cash boost from energy industry 2022 campaign contributions: Who's backing Texas political candidates Patrick, 70, has insisted he wants to stay where he is. Abbott's campaign stressed that since the start of 2021, the two-term Republican incumbent "has raised nearly $95 million from more than 418,000 donations." Since O'Rourke announced his. Oil and gas executives S. Javaid Anwar and Gary Martin, in particular, have been regular contributors to Abbott for years. During that week, Abbott assured Texans the grid was in better shape than ever. committee AND the candidate has received money from PACs representing that same ideological interest. Abbott, O'Rourke and more: See who's donating to Texas candidates ahead Abbott to rake in $1 million checks from individual donors. Texas Gov. AUSTIN Gov. Collier now has more money, a stronger team and a ground game that has pushed Patrick torun a more aggressive and public-facing campaignthan he ran four years ago. The two-term governor is one of the most prolific GOP fundraisers in the country and had previously reported raising more than $30 million through the first half of the year and said Tuesday his campaign has now raised $95 million during the current election cycle from more than 418,000 contributors. Washington, The Texas House Committee on State Affairs is scheduled to hold a joint hearing Thursday morning with the House Energy Resources Committee to examine what led to statewide electrical blackouts. Greg Abbott raised almost $25 million during the same period, according to Friday press releases from both of the campaigns. Just 6%, or $1,141, of his overall campaign contributions in the brief June fundraising period after the 2015 legislative session came from the energy industry. Tribune: Texas Leaders Raked in Millions After Electric Grid Collapse On ORourkes campaign they added, This is a grassroots campaign funded largely by the people of Texasnot the select few who know they can buy Abbott off.. As a Republican and a Texan, Abbott may have received significant campaign contributions from the NRA. Texas governor election: Beto O'Rourke looks to put Greg Abbott on defense in early stages of Texas governor's race. Campaign finance reports by Abbott, Lt. Gov. grand total of contributions Greg Abbott has reported in 2022Number of Contributions from Individuals (above itemization threshold): 292,180. their contributions as being related to the "First National Bank" since that's the source of the family's income. Beto O'Rourke, Greg Abbott release latest fundraising hauls | The Texas O'Rourke at that time had raised $7.2 million while Abbott raised nearly $19 million in the last six months of 2021, according to January campaign finance reports. In cases where two or more people from the same family contributed, the income-earner's occupation/employer is West Texas energy billionaires make 7-figure wager against Abbott in Speaking of donations he received from Texans in all 254 counties, Abbott said that with such help we will continue to spread the messages of freedom and liberty to every corner of the Lone Star State.. Donors who give more than $200 to any federal candidate, PAC or party committee must list their occupation and Greg Abbott and Beto O'Rourke shatter fundraising recordsin the Texas governors race, see who has been donating to candidates with this campaign finance interactive. Showing these clusters of contributions from people associated with particular organizations provides a valuable The Texas Tribune has been tracking contributions, expenditures and cash on hand for both candidates since ORourke officially entered the race in November last year. State requirements related to itemization thresholds and employment disclosures vary. The former El Paso congressman and presidential candidate is trying to become the first Democrat in nearly 30 years to win statewide office in Texas and to be the state's first Democratic governor since Ann Richards (1991-1995). Oil and politics have been entwined in Texas for more than a century, since wildcatters hit the first gusher at Spindletop back in 1901. Perhaps it goes without saying but producing quality journalism isn't cheap. Abbott has run a similar playbook as Perry and has taken it to a different level, Rottinghaus said. Billionaire money manager Ken Fisher, who lives in Dallas, donated $25,000 to Abbotts campaign, plus $100,000 to the Defend Texas PAC. Updated: Feb. 10, 2023. George W. Bush was heavily funded by his familys well-established energy network, his successor, former Gov. Last Christmas, Governor Greg Abbott bussed and dumped migrant families in the freezing cold in Washington, D.C. He knows how to walk that fine line between moderate Republicans and those that are very right of center, she said. Sign up for The Brief, our daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news. Based on the Ballotpedia is the digital encyclopedia of American politics and elections. Sign up for our newsletter to track moneys influence on U.S. elections and public policy. Gov. Dave Carney, Abbott's chief political strategist, said Wednesday that he expected O'Rourke to have strong fundraising numbers. Greg Abbott hauled in nearly $19 million over nine days and boasted an eye-popping $55 million in the bank as he prepares his campaign for a . The storm, as bad as it was, helped him on his bottom line for contributions.. Abbott candidate committee made to another committee affiliated with the governor. As of February 19, Abbotts committee reported that it had about $50 million in cash on hand. That far exceeds the $6.8 million in cash on hand that ORourkes committee, Beto For Texas, reported as of the same date. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines. "As we move into the heat of the summer campaign, were well positioned to fund all our campaign efforts, Texans for Greg Abbott Campaign Chairman Gardner Pate said in the Friday release. Those donations have added up, bringing in about $9.7 million for Abbott and $37.8 million for ORourke. employer. Although individual contributions are generally categorized based on the donor's occupation/employer, in some cases State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, who led much of the upper chambers response to the storm that left millions of Texans without electricity for days in subfreezing temperatures, also got a boost in funding. Robert T. Garrett, Austin Bureau Chief. Abbott's campaign said it received nearly 113,000 contributions and that 86% of the campaign contributions came from within Texas. In late June, it announced an $8.15 million digital media advertising buy, $8.8 million for TV and radio ads, and $2.75 million for Spanish media ads across platforms. reports from the FEC or state campaign finance agencies that reach applicable itemization thresholds. Since a deadly winter storm hit Texas earlier this month Governor Greg Abbott has repeatedly heaped criticism on ERCOT, the operator of the states electric grid, claiming the entity was woefully unprepared for the dangerous weather that has killed a still-untold number of people. From June 21 to June 30, after the legislative fundraising blackout ended, five of the largest and most prominent companies in the Texas power grid supply chain Calpine, Centerpoint, NRG Energy, Oncor and Vistra or their top executives collectively donated about $497,000 to state elected officials and political groups. AUSTIN Gov. As Gov. Republican incumbent Greg Abbott, who is seeking his third term in office, has reported huge fundraising hauls in the past, amassing staggering amounts of cash in his campaign coffers. Greg Abbott dwarfing other candidates in energy-interest contributions, according to a KHOU 11 analysis of data . For permission to reprint for commercial uses, The Defenders sent Oliver quotes from a Feb. 18 press conference during which Abbott said, ERCOT failed on each of these measures that they said they had undertaken. O'Rourke did not say how much money his campaign has on hand -- or how much it has spent -- while teasing his fundraising numbers before filing his latest campaign finance report. Greg Abbott has $38M in his campaign bank, but is it enough to scare off 2022 challengers? Because Texas has no campaign finance contribution limits, its possible both candidates will accumulate and spend record-breaking amounts of campaign cash by Election Day. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 50th attorney general of Texas from 2002 to 2015 and as a member of the Texas Supreme Court from 1996 to 2001.. Abbott was the third Republican to serve as attorney general of Texas since the . Greg Abbott attacks Beto O'Rourke without mentioning him by name, $2 million raised during the first 24 hours, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, Stand with us in our mission to discover and uncover the story of North Texas. Note that Paxtons top donor is the same as Gov. Warren spent more than $10 million to try to get Trump reelected in 2020. The Legislature ultimately passed a bill shepherded by Paddie in the House and state Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, in the Senate that requires power generation companies to prepare to withstand extreme weather conditions. State requirements related to itemization thresholds and employment Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has $38M in his campaign bank, but is it enough At the state level, Small donors make up almost half of the total amount ORourke raised. Bob has covered state government and politics for The Dallas Morning News since 2002. The organizations that donated the most money to Abbott this reporting period have previously given to the governor. The oil and gas industry was Abbotts top contributor, accounting for 19% of all funds raised, according to the report. Cobos salary is $143,000. Show us with your support. Abbott received $4.6 million from energy. Some of the state data included errors in the address field; these records were corrected when possible such as when the donors address was available elsewhere in the data set and omitted from the location-based calculations when not. He is an amateur triathlete, enjoys playing and watching soccer, traveling and hanging out with his wife. may affect those organizations or their industries.