This article is Part 4 of a four-part series demonstrating how the money in a lobby sector can impact state politics and legislation. Read the first three articles here, here, and here.

Our “Money Behind the Committee Chair” series spotlights the Texas lawmakers chairing prominent committees during the 87th Legislative Session, as well as the individual donors and PACs who have supported their campaigns leading up to this session.

Over the course of the 2020 election cycle, more than $662.5 million dollars were reported as contributions to Texas state-level candidates and PACs. Of that total, an astounding $46.9 million in donations went to Governor Greg Abbott’s campaign account. To put that number in context, Abbott’s donations account for seven percent of all Texas campaign contributions — and over 15 percent of candidate contributions — in an election cycle when he was not up for election.