Bush Plans Texas Fundraising Swing After 2016 Announcement

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who is expected to declare Monday that he is running for president, has booked a trip to Texas as part of a post-announcement fundraising tour. 

Bush will hold fundraisers June 25 in Dallas and Houston, according to invitations obtained by The Texas Tribune. The Dallas event is at the home of wealth manager John Tolleson, while the Houston reception is at the city's lavish St. Regis hotel. 

For each event, Bush's campaign is asking chairs to raise $27,000, a sum that gets them a photo with him and an invitation for two to a July 9-10 retreat in Kennebunkport, Maine, where his family spends its summers. Co-chairs, meanwhile, are expected to raise $13,250 for the Texas fundraisers. It costs $2,700 for individuals to attend either one.

The swing could mark Bush's first visit to Texas as an official candidate, but his fundraising operation is no stranger to the state. Equipped with a "Texas Leadership Committee" of dozens of prominent donors, a super PAC supporting Bush has been raising money here with the help of his sons Jeb Jr. and George P. Bush, the land commissioner. Jeb Bush's brother George W. Bush and father George H.W. Bush — both former presidents — also have headlined fundraisers for the super PAC in Texas.

Jeb Bush's roots in the state run deep. He was born in Midland, grew up in Houston and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin. Nowadays, Houston is home to his father, while his brother lives in Dallas. 

When Bush touches down in Texas this month, he will be just the latest candidate to tap the state's deep reservoir of GOP donor dollars. Former Gov. Rick Perry is barnstorming the state next week, holding nine fundraisers in seven cities over four days. And several other Republican candidates have other candidates were due in Texas this month to raise money, including native Sen. Ted Cruz and Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.