Tech and data center interests have injected millions of dollars into the final stretch of the Texas gubernatorial race, anchored by a $5 million contribution from billionaire Elon Musk to Republican Governor Greg Abbott’s campaign.
Campaign finance records covering the 30-day reporting period ending October 24 show that Abbott raised a total of $26 million. An analysis of the filings indicates that at least $6 million of that haul originated from Musk and other individuals associated with technology and data center enterprises.
Abbott’s primary political action committee entered the final week before the November 3 election with approximately $8.6 million in cash on hand. Meanwhile, his Democratic challenger, state Representative Gina Hinojosa, collected $17.5 million during the same fundraising window. Hinojosa’s totals included substantial backing from labor unions and national Democratic organizations, alongside a $1 million contribution from Illinois Democratic Governor JB Pritzker, leaving her campaign with less than $1 million in available cash.
The surge in tech-industry contributions arrives amid a heated political debate over the rapid expansion of data centers and artificial intelligence infrastructure across Texas. Last year, Abbott pledged to establish the state as an epicenter for artificial intelligence development. State staff also convened a meeting last December with technology firms, power line constructors, and electricity regulators just two days before the state’s principal grid operator introduced a new framework to evaluate data centers.
In recent months, Abbott directed state agencies to temporarily pause the issuance of permits for new data center projects, though critics have questioned the firmness of the moratorium. Defending his record, Abbott stated on television that he is the official requiring strict guidelines and guardrails to ensure that these facilities benefit local communities and operate as additive components to the state’s infrastructure.
Hinojosa has seized on Abbott’s alignment with the tech industry and Musk to frame the election as a referendum on corporate influence. In a public statement, Hinojosa questioned whether Texas belongs to everyday residents or wealthy elites. Public opinion polls heading into the final days of the race show Abbott holding a lead, with Hinojosa close behind and occasionally within the statistical margin of error.
The debate over data centers—focusing heavily on their substantial water consumption and potential impact on household electricity rates—has emerged as a central issue in the midterm elections. Recent polling indicates that half of all Americans would oppose the construction of a data center within three miles of their residence. While Hinojosa has dismissed Abbott’s data center pause as a political maneuver, Abbott’s campaign has countered by highlighting her legislative votes supporting tax incentives for data centers and a $125,000 campaign contribution she accepted from Jessica Livingston, a founding donor of OpenAI.
Representatives for Abbott’s political action committee criticized Hinojosa for hypocrisy, arguing that her campaign is heavily funded by tech wealth and progressive groups despite her populist rhetoric. Lawmakers from both major parties anticipate that the upcoming Texas legislative session will bring stricter regulatory measures targeting data centers as developer interest in the state remains robust.
Musk, recognized as the world’s wealthiest individual, stands as one of the Republican Party’s most prominent financial backers. Prior to the latest infusion, he contributed $500,000 to Abbott’s campaign earlier in the current election cycle. Musk’s business entities maintain a substantial physical footprint in Texas, encompassing a SpaceX rocket launch facility on the Gulf Coast, a major Tesla manufacturing plant in the Austin area, and plans for a microchip manufacturing facility near Houston. Representatives for Musk’s companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the campaign contributions.
Additional tech-sector donations to Abbott during the recent filing period included $200,000 from the employee political action committee of artificial intelligence firm Anthropic, and $300,000 from Anthropic co-founder Tom Brown. Abbott also secured $250,000 contributions from Dallas businessmen Harlan Crow and Ray Hunt, both of whom have participated in data center development initiatives, alongside smaller sums from other industry figures.
