Because of Perry's comparatively late entry into the race, he was behind other candidates in fundraising and was under pressure to raise money quickly. He had never before had to comply with federal rules for campaign finance.

Questions were raised about his fundraising methods. For example, his campaign was supported by a super PAC called Make America Great Again.

A super PAC is allowed to raise unlimited funds from individuals and even from corporations, which cannot contribute to federal candidates, but the super PAC is required to be completely independent from the campaign.

Make America Great Again was created and headed by Mike Toomey, who had been Perry's chief of staff. This arrangement was criticized as illegal by Fred Wertheimer, the president of the watchdog group Democracy 21, who said, “The idea that such a PAC is going to be independent from the campaign is ridiculous."

Perry's former legislative director, Dan Shelley, is also running a pro-Perry super PAC. Perry's longstanding feud with Karl Rove may be another factor in his Super PAC fundraising, as Rove is a key advisor to many major Republican donors.