AUSTIN — This year’s most expensive race for a seat in the Texas House is the heated primary between House Speaker Dade Phelan and newcomer David Covey, with at least $4 million already spent.

No other race comes close, according to a review of campaign finance records, and with the contest heading to a May 28 runoff, the price tag is expected to jump significantly.

Most of the money has poured in from sources outside District 21 in southeast Texas, providing 96% of the donations to Phelan’s campaign and almost 99% of Covey’s.

Out-of-state groups have pitched in as well, including Club for Growth, a national anti-tax organization that has spent over $1 million on anti-Phelan TV ads, including one depicting the speaker as a liberal “Democrat in disguise.”

That ad was only the beginning for Club for Growth. The group, which is a leading advocate for spending public money on private schools, has reserved over $1.1 million in ad time leading up to the Phelan-Covey runoff, according to AdImpact, an advertising tracking service.

“Dade Phelan has repeatedly failed Texans on numerous issues from letting school choice fail to appointing liberal Democrats to leadership positions, and he will be held accountable by the voters in the runoff,” said David McIntosh, president of Club for Growth.

“We will spend whatever it takes,” he said.

Phelan, leader of the Texas House since 2021, is fighting back with ads depicting Covey as a “puppet of West Texas billionaires” and out-of-state school voucher boosters. He peppers his speeches and TV ads with references to “outsiders” who are trying to remove him from office.

“These outsiders are desperate to steal the speakership from southeast Texas,” Joe Evans, chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party, says in one Phelan ad.

Phelan finished second to Covey in the March primary despite raising $5.3 million compared to Covey’s $861,000.

Covey countered with strong support from out-of-state sources, including Club for Growth and its subsidiary, the School Freedom Fund, which spent almost $400,000 in TV ads before the primary.

It all adds up to unusually high fundraising totals for a Texas House primary — largesse that highlights the importance of the Phelan-Covey race as the Republican Party’s right flank seeks greater control over legislation and policy.

Phelan, R-Beaumont, has been blamed for difficulties some conservative priorities have faced in the House, particularly those favored by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who presides over the Senate. Last year’s House vote to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton put another target on Phelan’s back.

Former President Donald Trump, who has strong ties to Patrick and Paxton, endorsed Covey, while Gov. Greg Abbott has remained neutral.

Phelan has countered by emphasizing his deep ties to the district, where Phelan Boulevard is a major artery in Beaumont.

“I’ve identified my voters,” Phelan told Capital Tonight on Spectrum News in March. “I’ve got strong support back home, despite $5 million that we know of that was spent against me, despite endorsements from all over the country against me.”

Phelan will have to mount a comeback in the runoff to remain in office.

Covey received 46% of the vote to Phelan’s 43% in the March primary. Alicia Davis, who raised little money and did not campaign aggressively, got 10%.

No GOP primary drew more money

Covey and Phelan raised a combined $6.17 million in the eight months before the primary. That was more than three times higher than the next-closest race in a GOP primary that saw a number of anti-incumbent subplots emerge, according to campaign finance reports.

Abbott targeted House Republicans who thwarted his “school choice” agenda, while Paxton went after Republicans, including Phelan, who voted last year to impeach him on allegations of official misconduct.

A distant second in GOP primary fundraising was a four-way race pitting Rep. John Kuempel, R-Seguin, against David Freimarck, Alan Schoolcraft and Greg Switzer, with a combined $1.85 million raised.

Kuempel, who opposed Abbott’s school choice push and voted for impeachment, will face Schoolcraft in the runoff.

Phelan’s status as one of the most influential Republicans in Texas has drawn attention and money to his race.

As speaker, Phelan plays a prominent role in shaping the House by enforcing rules and assigning leaders to committees where much of the legislative work gets done.

That status is a double-edged sword, allowing Phelan to raise significant amounts of campaign cash but making him a prominent target for fellow Republicans eager for a larger political role.

“While he only represents one district, he does have a position in the chamber that makes him someone that his opponents would want to target more than just a rank-and-file member,” said James Nelson, a political science professor at Lamar University in Beaumont.

A winner-takes-all outcome also is driving interest in the race. With no Democrat on the November ballot, the victor of the Phelan-Covey runoff is set to advance to the Legislature next year.

Outside money dominates

Phelan’s campaign collected $5.31 million in the eight months before the primary, with $5.11 million coming from outside the district, which is made up of Jasper, Jefferson and Orange counties.

His campaign did not respond to questions about donors from outside the district.

Covey’s campaign raised $860,592 before the primary, with $849,696 from donors who do not live in the district.

His biggest supporter was Texans United for a Conservative Majority, an ultraconservative political action committee bankrolled by West Texas oil tycoons Tim Dunn and Faris Wilks that targets Republican lawmakers seen as disloyal to GOP priorities.

The organization supplied Covey with $225,000 in direct contributions, plus $181,619 earmarked for TV ads, campaign finance records show.

Covey did not directly respond to questions about contributions from outside the district. In a statement, he said he answers “first and foremost” to constituents in southeast Texas.

“My donor base aligns with the conservative values of southeast Texas,” Covey said. “Dade Phelan cannot say the same.”

Covey’s second-highest contribution, $200,000, came from Amarillo businessman Alex Fairly. Patrick’s campaign spent $18,748 in campaign endorsement text messages on Covey’s behalf.

Phelan’s biggest donations

Phelan, who joined the Texas House in 2015, was reelected four times without facing a primary opponent. That changed this year with Covey, who is making his first run for public office.

Phelan’s largest contribution was $750,000 from the Republican State Leadership Committee Grassroots Account. The Washington, D.C.-based group donates to Republicans running for state legislatures and other down-ballot offices.

Phelan is the only Texan to receive a donation from the group.

He also got $200,000 from the Texas Sands PAC, the political action committee of the Las Vegas Sands, a casino and resort giant that has been pushing to expand gambling in Texas.

Phelan received three other six-figure donations. Texans for Responsible Government, formed by GOP donors Michael and Mary Porter, gave $125,000. Ray Hunt, a Dallas billionaire and oil producer, and the Border Health PAC each donated $100,000.

In the months before the primary, Phelan’s campaign spent $1.8 million on advertising, according to AdImpact. Nearly $800,000 more is budgeted for advertising through the May 28 runoff.

Both candidates have traveled to Dallas to fill campaign coffers.

Republican donors and GOP lawmakers gathered last month at the Dallas home of billionaire Kelcy Warren for a Phelan fundraiser that also was attended by megadonor and businessman Harlan Crow.

Covey, whose campaign has spent over $1.2 million on TV ads, was in Dallas for a May 1 fundraiser by local businessman and conservative activist Doug Deason.

Neither campaign responded to questions asking how much money the events raised.