In addition to spending more than $30 million to back Texas Republicans over the years, West Texas oil billionaire Tim Dunn has donated $5 million this cycle to a super PAC backing Republican Mike Rogers’ U.S. Senate campaign in Michigan.
The contributions mark Dunn’s first apparent foray into Midwest politics.
Dunn’s contributions to the Great Lakes Conservative Fund, or GLCF, were made in two installments of $2.5 million each in April and June of last year. Together, they accounted for more than 98% of the PAC’s total fundraising during the first half of 2025, according to a mid-year report filed July 31 with the Federal Election Commission.
Rogers is now in a heated race against progressive Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, who’s leading in the latest polls despite Democratic primary rival Haley Stevens announcing a last-minute endorsement of Rogers, the man she had spent over a year saying would be a “nightmare” and a “rubber stamp” for President Donald Trump’s agenda.
“Our Democratic nominee for Senate said I was no longer welcome in his campaign and that I should stay away,” Stevens said in a video announcing her decision. “And he’s right. And that’s why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today.”
Despite Stevens’ 11th-hour defection, nonpartisan election prognosticator Cook Political Report favors El-Sayed to win the race, rating the contest “Lean Democratic.” Meanwhile, the latest New York Times/Siena poll shows El-Sayed with an impressive 11-point lead — despite the out-of-state money that poured in for his rival from Dunn and others.
Though he’s new to Michigan meddling, Dunn has a history of supporting hard-right Republicans at the national level. In 2023, Dunn contributed $5 million to Make America Great Again Inc., a super PAC that supported President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign.
But Dunn — who co-founded Midland oil and gas company CrownQuest Operating — has emerged in recent years as one of the top funders of Texas GOP candidates.
This cycle alone, Dunn has given more than $11 million to Texas Republican PACs, with almost all of it going to Texans for a Conservative Majority, according to campaign finance database Transparency USA.
Dunn and fellow Texas GOP megadonor Farris Wilks have been frequent topics of conversation on the campaign trail for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico. The Austin-area state rep has accused Dunn and Wilks of attempting to buy control over state government.
“They’ve already bought our governor. They’ve bought our lieutenant governor. They’ve bought our attorney general. They’ve bought our State Senate. And now, to complete their takeover, they’re trying to buy the Texas House,” Rep. Talarico said of Dunn and Wilks in 2025 before announcing his run for U.S. Senate.
Campaign finance records released in July show that one of the billionaire’s political action committees, Jefferson Rising, spent $110,000 for text messages opposing Talarico.
But investments in both the Lone Star State and Michigan might not be paying off for Dunn.
As with El-Sayed, some recent polling shows Talarico with a lead that exceeds the margin of error in his race. He now holds a seven-point lead over his Republican rival Ken Paxton in the New York Times/Siena poll.
Texas politics is a mess. We make it a readable mess.
Sign up for San Antonio Current’s new “Texas Politics This Week” newsletter.
Sign Up for SA Current newsletters.
Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
