Mr. James “Doug” Pitcock, Jr., 88, is President and CEO of Williams Brothers Construction Company and resides in Houston. His company is one of the largest highway and bridge contractors in the state, undertaking projects both in Texas and across the nation. Mr. Pitcock gave $1,218,000 in political contributions during the last cycle, making him one of the largest political donors in Texas.

In the last election cycle Mr. Pitcock donated to both Republicans and Democrats. However, his contributions to the state’s power holders were significantly larger than to other candidates and officeholders. This political donation strategy suggests that Mr. Pitcock seeks to facilitate good will from those who have the power to impact his business, rather than to promote one political ideology over another.

Here’s an overview of Mr. Pitcock’s giving from the past election cycle:

Key takeaways from Mr. Pitcock’s giving:

1. Large support to Senate Transportation Committee Chair.
   Not surprisingly the top three politicians Mr. Pitcock invested in were power brokers Governor Greg Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, and House Speaker Joe Straus. But Mr. Pitcock’s fourth largest recipient, to the tune of $75,000, is State Senator Robert Nichols. Sen. Nichols is not currently up for re-election, and Mr. Pitcock’s contributions to Sen. Nichols came immediately upon the heels of the 84th Texas legislative session. Sen. Nichols serves as chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, the committee whose work arguably most directly impacts Mr. Pitcock’s highway and bridge business.
2. Support for Houston’s next mayor.
   At the conclusion of the 84th Legislative Session, Mr. Pitcock donated $5,000 to a long-time Democratic State Representative from Houston, Sylvester Turner. Prior to the session’s end, State Rep. Turner announced he would not be seeking another term as State Representative, turning his attention instead to running for mayor of Houston. Most political observers viewed State Rep. Turner as the heavy favorite to win the mayoral race from the outset, a feat he indeed accomplished, thanks in part to a large campaign war chest.
3. Governor Abbott is biggest recipient.
   Coming in at over a quarter of a million dollars, Republican Governor Greg Abbott received more money from Mr. Pitcock than any other candidate or group. Gov. Abbott is not currently up for re-election, which makes one wonder why Mr. Pitcock would be investing so heavily. There are a myriad of reasons why Mr. Pitcock might be supporting Gov. Abbott at such a high level including approval of the governor’s performance thus far, unique access to the governor, or even to build up Gov. Abbott’s bank account so people are less likely to challenge him in two years when he’s up for reelection. Whatever the reason(s), Mr. Pitcock is clearly a big fan of Texas’ current governor.

Most interesting donation:

While Mr. Pitcock’s 2015-2016 giving centered on powerful legislative members, one political contribution is an outlier: A $1,000 donation to Republican Judge Dan Hinde of the 269th Harris County District Court. Judge Hinde’s term does not expire until 2018. As Mr. Pitcock resides in Harris County, involvement in judicial races would be normal. However, it appears that Judge Hinde is the only judicial officeholder who has received contributions from Mr. Pitcock, despite other Republican Harris County judges having been on the November 2016 ballot.

**Note: this article originally used donation information from 1/1/2015 – 6/30/2016, as that was the only available data at the time of publication. Since then, numbers throughout the article have been updated to reflect all giving from 1/1/2015 – 12/10/2016.

Our A Closer Look series provides a breakdown of a particular donor’s giving habits within Texas politics. We specifically analyze to whom money is given and when, thus providing context so citizens can determine the motivation behind the donor’s giving. Stay tuned for the next installment.