One Dollar in Five in Texas State Politics Came From Outside Texas This Cycle
Of the $886.0 million given to Texas state-level candidates and committees in the 2025-26 cycle, $184.2 million, or 20.8 percent, came from contributors who listed an address outside Texas on public filings. California led the out-of-state sources with $34.7 million, followed by New York, Nevada and the District of Columbia. The figures cover reports filed with the Texas Ethics Commission through October 7, 2026.
20.8%
of $886.0M came from outside Texas, 2025-26
California, New York and Nevada supplied 41% of the out-of-state money
- California$34.7M
- New York$21.5M
- Nevada$19.8M
- District of Columbia$17.3M
- Pennsylvania$12.0M
- Virginia$8.5M
- Florida$7.4M
- Maryland$6.8M
- Illinois$6.0M
- Massachusetts$5.1M
- Michigan$4.1M
- Missouri$3.0M
How to Cite
Source: Texas Nationalist Movement analysis, thetnm.org/data/outside-money-texas-politics
Reporters and researchers may republish this chart and these figures with that line and a link to this page. For questions about the method, or an interview, write media@thetnm.org.
Method
The figures come from whoboughttexas.com, TNM's public index of outside money in Texas politics, built on the itemized campaign-finance reports filed with the Texas Ethics Commission. Every dollar is sorted into Texas, outside Texas or unresolved.
Location is the contributor's reported address on the filing, not verified residency. Money the records cannot place, $27.9 million this cycle, stays in the total as unresolved rather than being assigned to either side, so the outside share is a floor.
The state totals on this page count each itemized contribution once, by the contributor's reported state. The index's candidate profiles also trace money routed through political committees back to those committees' donors, so a profile can show more from a state than the direct total here.
Out-of-state giving is lawful and common. The figures say nothing about any recipient's votes or conduct, and the index does not advocate the election or defeat of any candidate.
This page is a snapshot of index release tec-2026-10-07-lifetime. The index refreshes after each filing deadline, and the current figures are at whoboughttexas.com.
The Data
| Contributor's reported state | Amount ($ millions) | Share of out-of-state money |
|---|---|---|
| California | 34.67 | 18.8% |
| New York | 21.54 | 11.7% |
| Nevada | 19.76 | 10.7% |
| District of Columbia | 17.26 | 9.4% |
| Pennsylvania | 11.99 | 6.5% |
| Virginia | 8.54 | 4.6% |
| Florida | 7.43 | 4.0% |
| Maryland | 6.79 | 3.7% |
| Illinois | 6.01 | 3.3% |
| Massachusetts | 5.14 | 2.8% |
| Michigan | 4.14 | 2.2% |
| Missouri | 3.05 | 1.7% |
| Oklahoma | 3.01 | 1.6% |
| Washington | 2.53 | 1.4% |
| Georgia | 2.52 | 1.4% |
| Indiana | 2.44 | 1.3% |
| Arizona | 2.35 | 1.3% |
| Colorado | 2.16 | 1.2% |
| Nebraska | 1.95 | 1.1% |
| Connecticut | 1.94 | 1.1% |
| New Jersey | 1.72 | 0.9% |
| Ohio | 1.64 | 0.9% |
| North Carolina | 1.46 | 0.8% |
| New Mexico | 1.35 | 0.7% |
| Tennessee | 1.32 | 0.7% |
| Minnesota | 1.03 | 0.6% |
| Louisiana | 0.95 | 0.5% |
| Arkansas | 0.94 | 0.5% |
| Delaware | 0.87 | 0.5% |
| Oregon | 0.86 | 0.5% |
| South Carolina | 0.83 | 0.5% |
| Wisconsin | 0.68 | 0.4% |
| Kansas | 0.64 | 0.3% |
| Kentucky | 0.57 | 0.3% |
| Iowa | 0.55 | 0.3% |
| Utah | 0.48 | 0.3% |
| Wyoming | 0.42 | 0.2% |
| Alabama | 0.41 | 0.2% |
| Vermont | 0.27 | 0.1% |
| Maine | 0.26 | 0.1% |
| Mississippi | 0.26 | 0.1% |
| New Hampshire | 0.23 | 0.1% |
| Rhode Island | 0.23 | 0.1% |
| Hawaii | 0.18 | 0.1% |
| Idaho | 0.18 | 0.1% |
| Montana | 0.17 | 0.1% |
| Alaska | 0.11 | 0.1% |
| West Virginia | 0.10 | 0.1% |
| Out-of-state PACs (no state given) | 0.09 | 0.0% |
| South Dakota | 0.08 | 0.0% |
| North Dakota | 0.07 | 0.0% |
All money this cycle: $886.0 million. From Texas addresses: $673.9 million. From outside Texas: $184.2 million (20.8%). Unresolved: $27.9 million (3.1%).
Sources
Read the Argument
More TNM Data
- Texans Pay More in Taxes Than It Costs to Govern Texas
- Texans' Share of Federal Interest Has More Than Doubled Since 2019
- Texas Paid the Second-Most Federal Taxes of Any State in Fiscal 2025
- Texas Would Rank Eighth Among the World's Economies
Published October 23, 2026 by the Texas Nationalist Movement.