Republican · Lieutenant Governor
Dan Patrick
Record verified Sept. 24, 2026 · Corrections welcome
Dan Patrick is the Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor in the November 3, 2026 general election. Patrick directed the Texas Senate to study “preventing Sharia law in Texas.”. The office presides over the Texas Senate, controls which bills reach the floor and sits on the Legislative Budget Board.
Dan Patrick’s sourced public-service history includes State Senator (SD 7) in Texas Senate from 2007 to 2015; Lieutenant Governor in State of Texas from 2015 to the present.
The sourced record below also covers: Patrick directed the Texas Senate to study “preventing Sharia law in Texas.”. Each item remains attributed to its original statement, filing, reported account, official action, or court record; allegations are not presented as findings.
Reported coverage
Coverage
Credible reporting and clearly labeled analysis, opinion, interviews, and guides.
Goodwin reports Patrick campaign deepfake
Reporting on Goodwin’s complaint involving a campaign deepfake and Patrick’s campaign.
Goodwin wins Democratic runoff for lieutenant governor
A report on the Democratic runoff, Goodwin’s campaign, and the general-election contest with Patrick.
Record sourced · Reviewed September 24, 2026
Record at a glance
Civil liberties
Directed a Sharia-law study
Patrick directed the Texas Senate to study “preventing Sharia law in Texas.”
The Texas Tribune reported that one of Patrick's 2026 interim charges called for studying “preventing Sharia law in Texas.” In later charges, he also directed senators to study broader religious-liberty protections. The guide found no evidence in the cited record that Sharia had displaced Texas law or that a religious tribunal exercised state judicial authority.
Dan Patrick's religious-liberty interim charges (Texas Tribune) · REPORTED with linked PRIMARY material · reviewed September 24, 2026
Campaign-finance audit
Filing review and source trail
Partial review · checked September 24, 2026
The candidate’s available 2025–2026 TEC reports were reviewed through June 30, 2026. No explicitly identified pro-Israel PAC receipt was located; that finding does not establish a corporate-PAC-free campaign.
Source details
- Filing system
- TEC
- Review period
- 20250101 through 20260630
- Filing ID(s)
- 00057897
- Review scope
- Partial: PAC-name screening of the 2025–2026 Texas Ethics Commission reports through June 30, 2026 is done. Review of large individual donors and full PAC and independent-spending tracing is still outstanding.
How we checked
- Matched the candidate's Texas Ethics Commission filer ID and 2025–2026 reports in the September 24, 2026 bulk export.
- Screened contributor names for identified Israel-policy organizations; a plain word search was rejected because it matched donor surnames.
- Outstanding: list every PAC contributor, review individual donors giving $25,000 or more against independent advocacy sources, and trace independent spending.
PAC & IE receipts
Direct AIPAC, other pro-Israel PAC, IE support and IE opposition remain separate.
View receipts →Major donor context
No public info found
Israel-linked financial actions
Purchase of Israel bonds: $6,000,000 campaign · $25,000 personal
Patrick’s campaign first announced a $3 million Israel-bond purchase, matching the $1 million contribution and $2 million loan that Defend Texas Liberty had provided in June 2023. The Texas Tribune connected that announcement to pressure after the PAC’s then-president hosted white supremacist Nick Fuentes. On October 31, Patrick’s campaign announced another $3 million purchase and Patrick said he was personally buying $25,000. These were financial actions, not contributions received; the reporting does not establish that the bond purchases returned the PAC’s money or prove Patrick’s motive.
Pro-Paxton group gives $3 million to impeachment trial judge Dan Patrick (Texas Tribune) · Dan Patrick to use $3 million from Defend Texas Liberty on Israeli bonds (Texas Tribune) · I’m purchasing $3 million in bonds for Israel (campaign statement) · Patrick buys another $3 million in Israeli bonds (campaign release PDF)
Muslim community engagement
We found no public record of an in-person engagement or organized policy work with a Muslim organization in the sources reviewed through September 24, 2026.
Years in public office: 19 years
State Senator (SD 7) · Texas Senate
2007-01-09 – 2015-01-13 · Lt. Governor Dan Patrick (Texas Legislative Reference Library)
Lieutenant Governor · State of Texas
2015-01-20 – present · Lt. Governor Dan Patrick (Texas Legislative Reference Library)
Completed years of elected or appointed government service as of September 24, 2026, with overlapping terms counted once.
What to know
Certified for the November 3, 2026 ballot as the Republican candidate.
Patrick directed the Texas Senate to study “preventing Sharia law in Texas.”
Dan Patrick's religious-liberty interim charges (Texas Tribune)
Evidence
Muslims, Islam & Civil Rights — Documented Record
July 27, 2026 · action · Independent reporting
Patrick directed the Texas Senate to study “preventing Sharia law in Texas.”
The Texas Tribune reported that one of Patrick's 2026 interim charges called for studying “preventing Sharia law in Texas.” In later charges, he also directed senators to study broader religious-liberty protections. The guide found no evidence in the cited record that Sharia had displaced Texas law or that a religious tribunal exercised state judicial authority.
Why it matters for this office: The lieutenant governor sets the Senate's interim study agenda. The Texas Supreme Court has held that religious arbitration agreements remain subject to ordinary Texas statutory validity and enforceability review.
Receipts · 2
Dan Patrick's religious-liberty interim charges (Texas Tribune) · REPORTED with linked PRIMARY material · Last reviewed September 24, 2026
Also: In re Mariam Ayad, No. 22-0078 (Supreme Court of Texas) · PRIMARY
Response · ORGANIZATION RESPONSE
CAIR-Texas and MAS Dallas urged the Senate's new Religious Liberty Committee to protect all faiths and confront anti-Muslim hate. This is a community response to the committee, not a position of the candidate.
Source: CAIR-Texas press release
Democracy & Civil LibertiesOpen
No candidate-specific record was located for this category in the sources reviewed through September 24, 2026.
How we checked
Family & Household PolicyOpen
No candidate-specific record was located for this category in the sources reviewed through September 24, 2026.
How we checked
Office-Specific Record & AuthorityOpen
No candidate-specific record was located for this category in the sources reviewed through September 24, 2026.
How we checked
Muslim Community EngagementOpen
No candidate-specific record was located for this category in the sources reviewed through September 24, 2026.
How we checked
Political Money & Israel-Policy Organizations
No public info found
Palestine, Israel & Foreign PolicyOpen
This issue falls largely outside the authority of this office. We include it only when the candidate has addressed it publicly.
How we checked
Ballot listing: 2026 General Election statewide sample ballot, Texas Secretary of State. Page last reviewed September 24, 2026. Return to the Lieutenant Governor race overview. Methods & authorship. Corrections & updates.