AUSTIN, Texas — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke raised a staggering $27.6 million from late February through June, according to his campaign. That's the most amount of money a Texan seeking state office has ever raised in a campaign finance reporting period.
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Texans for Greg Abbott today said his campaign collected more than $24.9 million in the latest reporting period from February 20th to June 30th.
He also continues to lead O'Rourke in the most recent polls.
Both candidates were required to formally disclose their latest campaign finances on a report due Friday to the Texas Ethics Commission. It will cover Feb. 20 through June 30.
O’Rourke’s haul came from over 511,000 contributions, 98.9% of which came in online, according O’Rourke’s campaign. The average donation was $54.
The most recent fundraising period saw at least two major events that energized Democrats, including the Uvalde school shooting in May and then the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade in June.
“We’re receiving support from people in every part of Texas who want to work together to ensure our state moves beyond Greg Abbott’s extremism and finally leads in great jobs, world class schools, the ability to see a doctor, keeping our kids safe and protecting a woman’s freedom to make her own decisions about her own body, health care and future,” O’Rourke said in a statement.
Abbott's campaign said 86% of the 113,000 2022 donations came from "a wide variety of Texans.".
“Texans continue to show their support for Governor Abbott’s campaign by donating to his campaign. As we move into the heat of the summer campaign, we’re well positioned to fund all our campaign efforts,” said Gardner Pate, Texans for Greg Abbott Campaign Chairman.
“Our campaign has also pre-purchased more than $20 million in advertising for the fall, and begun funding an extensive block-walking program to get voters to the polls this November,” Pate said.
Abbott's total cash on hand at the end of June 30th was nearly $46 million, according to his campaign.
O’Rourke’s campaign did not release his latest cash-on-hand figure.