Abbott sets record with campaign cash
Gov. Greg Abbott has $43.3 million in the bank for his re-election campaign, a record amount for a statewide official.
AUSTIN — Gov. Greg Abbott has a whopping $43.3 million in the bank for his re-election campaign, a record amount for a statewide official that will prove a steep hurdle for the nine Democrats and other challengers seeking to boot him from office. New fundraising summaries made public on Thursday show the 60-year-old, first-term incumbent Republican holds what will likely prove an insurmountable lead over any opponents and, as the campaign season gears up, could indicate that he plans to spend more than the $48 million he did four years ago.
It also signals Abbott’s political strength and popularity in a solid Red State, political observers said.
“With 11 months of fundraising to go in the 2018 electoral cycle, Gov. Abbott’s $43.3 million campaign war chest indicates two things,” said Mark Jones, a political scientist at Houston’s Rice University who tracks campaign spending. “One, even though Gov. Abbott did not draw a top-tier Democratic challenger, he is still going to run a first-class professional campaign with the optimal goal
of matching — if not surpassing — his 20-point margin of victory over Wendy Davis in 2014. Two, it means that Gov. Abbott will have all the money he needs to fund this over-the-top campaign effort.”
In releasing the totals of Abbott’s fundraising report to be filed by Monday, his campaign said the fund-raising haul confirms that most Texans agree with Abbott’s positions that his message is resonating with Texans — an assertion that quickly drew howls from several Democrats running against him.
“I am honored and grateful for the continued support of so many throughout this great state,” Abbott said Thursday in a statement. “2017 was a banner year for Texas as we added more jobs than any other state, reached the lowest unemployment rate in 40 years and ranked as the state with the best economic climate.
“There is more work to be done, and with the upcoming campaign in full swing, I will continue to promote ideas that will continue to elevate the Lone Star State to new heights.”
In the past six months, Abbott’s report shows that he added an additional $9 million to his campaign coffers — an amount that, when added to the governor’s previous fundraising tally of around $41 million, means that he raised as much as $50 million — a king’s ransom even in Texas politics.
While Abbott spent $48 million to get elected in 2014, compared with $40 million that Davis spent on her losing campaign, the record amount spent on a governor’s race in Texas was in 2002, when incumbent Republican Rick Perry and Laredo businessman Tony Sanchez spent around $95 million, with Sanchez’ writing checks for more than $62 million to fund his unsuccessful campaign.
Rise in first-time donors
Abbott’s campaign said his latest contributions include more than 53 percent from firsttime donors, and that 85 percent of all his donors are Texas residents. Additionally, the campaign said he received donations from each of Texas’ 254 counties.
In all, Abbott’s campaign said more than 38,000 individual contributions for his 2018 race have brought in $19.1 million, with more than 93 percent of those donations coming from Texas.
Additionally, the campaign saw a rise in new contributors last year, with 57 percent of all donations from first-time donors.
While Abbott’s campaign and Republicans applauded the incumbent governor’s record campaign fundraising total, Democrats have insisted the total underscores how beholden Abbott is to big business and special interests who have contributed a large portion of the total.
Abbott also has faced criticism for taking sizable donations from Texans that he names to state boards and commissions. The 259 men and women he has nominated since becoming governor in January 2015 have contributed roughly a combined $14.2 million to Abbott’s campaigns since 2001, when he was elected attorney general, according to the San Antonio ExpressNews.
Jones said the $43.3 million Abbott now has in the bank will come in handy as he seeks to identify and mobilize likely GOP voters in Texas and burnish the Republican Party brand in the Lone Star State.
“As is the case nationwide, President Trump represents a millstone around the necks of Republican candidates here in Texas, making some of them susceptible to the blue wave that is sweeping the country,” Jones said. “The efforts by Gov. Abbott’s campaign will represent a lifeline to many Republicans facing credible Democratic challenges and should help numerous Republicans avoid being swept out of office by an antiTrump blue wave.”
Ready for challenge
At a recent rally, former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez seemed to brush off Abbott’s money: “He’ll have the money and I’ll have the people.”
At an Austin forum on Monday, Democratic challenger Andrew White said he intends to raise enough money to compete against Abbott in the general election — though he declined to detail how much he has in the bank now, for his primary race against Valdez and seven other contenders.
“My goal is not to win the primary, it is to win the general election,” he said.
Also on Thursday, Justin Nelson, the lone candidate challenging embattled Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, said he has raised more than $900,000 in his bid to show voters he’s serious about taking on one of the state’s most politically vulnerable officials.
Nelson and Paxton are unopposed in March’s primary election and will face off in the November general election. Paxton, a first-term Republican to the attorney general’s office, is beloved by tea party Republicans but has spent the majority of his tenure under indictment and fighting allegations he committed securities fraud prior to taking office. He last reported in July 2017 having about $5 million for his election campaign. His spokesman would not comment on what Paxton currently has on hand.
Nelson, an Austin-area attorney and Democrat, plans to report that he raised $911,778, all collected since he announced in November he would take on Paxton. He contributed $500,000 of it himself, according a news release.