In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott is the number one fundraiser in state politics in the 2022 election cycle so far. According to the most recent campaign finance reports made to the Texas Ethics Commission, the governor received $44,778,653 in total contributions and spent $37,930,300 between January 1, 2021 and February 19, 2022. Abbott is running for re-election in 2022.
Gov. Abbott is a member of the Republican Party and first assumed office in 2015.
Gov. Abbott’s reported campaign finance activity, by quarter (2015-2022)
Contributions to Gov. Abbott
Of the $44.8 million already reported in the 2022 election cycle, 21.9 percent came from the top 10 donors.
Top Donors to Gov. Abbott (1/1/2021 – 2/19/2022)
| Rank | Total Amount | Donor Name | Donor Type |
| 1. | $2,156,765 | Greg Abbott | Entity |
| 2. | $1,007,200 | Bobby Cox | Individual |
| 3. | $1,000,000 | James D Pitcock Jr | Individual |
| 4. | $1,000,000 | Kelcy L Warren | Individual |
| 5. | $1,000,000 | Kenny A and Lisa Troutt | Individual |
| 6. | $1,000,000 | Michael & Mary Porter | Individual |
| 7. | $939,580 | S Javaid Anwar | Individual |
| 8. | $600,000 | Arcilia Acosta | Individual |
| 9. | $590,500 | Gary H Martin | Individual |
| 10. | $518,900 | Joseph Agresti | Individual |
The top donor, Greg Abbott, represents reported contributions received by Gov. Abbott’s candidate committee from another committee affiliated with the governor.
Expenditures by Gov. Abbott
On the expenditures side, Gov. Abbott reported $37.9 million, with 79.1 percent of all spending going to the 10 payees topping the list.
Top Expenditures by Gov. Abbott (1/1/2021 – 2/19/2022)
| Rank | Total Amount | Payee Name | Payee Type |
| 1. | $8,746,014.03 | CrossRoads Media LLC | Entity |
| 2. | $6,546,414.35 | Cross Screen Media | Entity |
| 3. | $3,665,940.49 | Department of US Treasury IRS | Entity |
| 4. | $3,057,542.44 | Targeted Victory | Entity |
| 5. | $2,156,764.84 | Greg Abbott | Entity |
| 6. | $1,742,814.14 | Paychex Inc | Entity |
| 7. | $1,466,804 | Camelback Strategy Group | Entity |
| 8. | $1,159,868.05 | Unisource Direct | Entity |
| 9. | $836,209.26 | Direct Response LLC | Entity |
| 10. | $625,920.58 | Sarah Whitley | Entity |
The fifth payee, listed as Greg Abbott, represents reported expenditures a Gov. Abbott candidate committee made to another committee affiliated with the governor. Note that the same amount appears on both the contributions and the expenditures side of the reported data.
How Gov. Abbott’s fundraising compares to other governors
Among elected officials holding the same level of state office, fundraising varies widely. A number of factors, including whether an incumbent officeholder is running for reelection, influence donor activity. Here is how fundraising by Texas Gov. Abbott compares to the 10 other governors with campaign finance data available from Transparency USA in 2022:
Fundraising reported by 11 U.S. governors in the 2022 election cycle
The data above are based on campaign finance reports that active Texas PACs submitted to the Texas Ethics Commission. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines. State or federal law may require filers to submit additional reports.
| Report Name | Report Due Date |
| 2022 Jan Semiannual | 1/18/2022 |
| 2022 Pre-Primary (30 Days) | 1/31/2022 |
| 2022 Pre-Primary (8 Days) | 2/22/2022 |
| 2022 Primary Runoff | 5/16/2022 |
| 2022 Jul Semiannual | 7/15/2022 |
| 2022 Pre-General (30 Days) | 10/11/2022 |
| 2022 Pre-General (8 Days) | 10/31/2022 |
| 2022 Semiannual Data | 1/17/2023 |
This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.
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