February 26, 2008

Texas House Candidates Raise Millions
for Hottest Fights Featuring Incumbents

Fourteen Primary Races Generate $3.5 Million as Gambling
Forces and Craddick Backers Like Leininger and Perry Give Big

By Mike Hailey
Capitol Inside Editor

TEXAS HOUSE FUNDRAISING Contested March 4 Primary Races Minimum $100,000 Donations & Loans January 1, 2007 - February 25, 2008

1 HD 36 Kino Flores (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $106,629 Election Cycle: $551,667 Sandra Rodriguez (D) 8 Day Report: $198,572 Election Cycle: $346,310 Total Price Tag: $897,977 2 HD 99 Charlie Geren (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $170,739 Election Cycle: $478,055 Tom Annunziato (R) 8 Day Report: $113,431 Election Cycle: $295,596 Total Price Tag: $773,651 3 HD 61 Phil King (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $227,443 Election Cycle: $595,092 Joe Tison (R) 8 Day Report: $74,792 Election Cycle: $142,090 Total Price Tag: $737,182 4 HD 78 Pat Haggerty (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $169,595 Election Cycle: $357,106 Dee Margo (R) 8 Day Report: $241,158 Election Cycle: $373,028 Total Price Tag: $730,134 5 HD 43 Juan Escobar (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $137,583 Election Cycle: $245,880 Tara Rios Ybarra (D) 8 Day Report: $219,000 Election Cycle: $446,111 Total Price Tag: $691,991 6 HD 97 Bob Leonard (R) 8 Day Report: $29,750 Election Cycle: $280,030 Clint Roberts (R) 8 Day Report: $200 Election Cycle: $5,500 James Schull (R) 8 Day Report: $1,047 Election Cycle: $7,772 Mark Shelton (R) 8 Day Report: $137,177 Election Cycle: $370,865 Total Price Tag: $664,167 7 HD 56 Doc Anderson (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $181,103 Election Cycle: $251,665 Jonathan Sibley (R) 8 Day Report: $115,260 Election Cycle: $355,052 Total Price Tag: $606,717 8 HD 130 Corbin Van Arsdale (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $183,031 Election Cycle: $434,854 Allen Fletcher (R) 8 Day Report: $66,837 Election Cycle: $167,381 Total Price Tag: $602,235 9 HD 40 Aaron Pena (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $170,498 Election Cycle: $323,224 Eddie Saenz (D) 8 Day Report: $8,600 Election Cycle: $220,935 Total Price Tag: $544,159 10 HD 73 Nathan Macias (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $211,255 Election Cycle: $286,237 Doug Miller (R) 8 Day Report: $73,885 Election Cycle: $186,399 Total Price Tag: $472,636 11 HD 140 Kevin Bailey (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $146,090 Election Cycle: $326,573 Armando Walle (D) 8 Day Report: $80,415 Election Cycle: $117,225 Total Price Tag: $443,798 12 HD 112 Angie Chen Button (R) 8 Day Report: $24,691 Election Cycle: $315,363 Randy Dunning (R) 8 Day Report: $35,129 Election Cycle: $71,517 Jim Shepherd (R) 30 Day Report: $16,437 Election Cycle: $41,156 Total Price Tag: $428,036 13 HD 46 Dawnna Dukes (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $178,496 Election Cycle: $266,392 Brian Thompson (D) 8 Day Report: $105,572 Election Cycle: $129,040 Total Price Tag: $395,432 14 HD 4 Betty Brown (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $146,903 Election Cycle: $232,327 Wade Gent (R) 8 Day Report: $44,321 Election Cycle: $122,065 Total Price Tag: $354,392 15 HD 67 Jerry Madden (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $97,150 Election Cycle: $232,118 Jon Cole (R) 8 Day Report: $31,625 Election Cycle: $71,122 Total Price Tag: $303,240 16 HD 55 John Alaniz (R) 8 Day Report: $2,765 Election Cycle: $14,492 Michael Pearce (R) 8 Day Report: $14,001 Election Cycle: $20,502 Ralph Sheffield (R) 8 Day Report: $73,849 Election Cycle: $98,568 Martha Tyroch (R) 8 Day Report: $26,819 Election Cycle: $140,561 Total Price Tag: $274,123 17 HD 147 Garnet Coleman (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $107,188 Election Cycle: $229,290 LaRhonda Terry (D) 8 Day Report: $875 Election Cycle: $31,895 Total Price Tag: $261,185 18 HD 101 Thomas Latham (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $57,736 Election Cycle: $124,720 Mike Anderson (R) 8 Day Report: $29,373 Election Cycle: $135,883 Total Price Tag: $260,603 19 HD 37 Rene Oliveira (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $87,059 Election Cycle: $194,221 John Shergold (D) 8 Day Report: $13,397 Election Cycle: $34,321 Total Price Tag: $228,542 20 HD 8 Byron Cook (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $46,120 Election Cycle: $206,302 Bobby Vickery (R) 8 Day Report: $7,550 Election Cycle: $13,650 Total Price Tag: $219,952 21 HD 77 Paul Moreno (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $32,750 Election Cycle: $101,092 Marisa Marquez (D) 8 Day Report: $40,514 Election Cycle: $100,869 Total Price Tag: $201,961 22 HD 96 Bill Zedler (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $89,625 Election Cycle: $158,605 Lee Jackson (R) 8 Day Report: $19,950 Election Cycle: $26,295 Total Price Tag: $182,900 23 HD 129 John Davis (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $39,850 Election Cycle: $126,799 Jon Keeney (R) 8 Day Report: $11,881 Election Cycle: $40,759 Total Price Tag: $167,558 24 HD 145 Carol Alvarado (D) 8 Day Report: $92,660 Election Cycle: $135,332 Elias De La Garza (D) 8 Day Report: $11,040 Election Cycle: $18,365 Total Price Tag: $153,697 25 HD 52 Bryan Daniel (R) 8 Day Report: $32,866 Election Cycle: $72,660 John Gordon (R) 8 Day Report: $19,827 Election Cycle: $24,175 Dee Hobbs (R) 8 Day Report: $20,770 Election Cycle: $40,501 Viv Sullivan (R) 8 Day Report: $8,560 Election Cycle: $10,510 Total Price Tag: $147,846 26 HD 26 Charlie Howard (R-Inc) 8 Day Report: $4,055 Election Cycle: $51,815 Norm Ley (R) 8 Day Report: 0 Election Cycle: 0 Paula Stansell (R) 8 Day Report: $16,422 Election Cycle: $78,787 Total Price Tag: $130,602 27 HD 27 Dora Olivo (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $46,175 Election Cycle: $72,153 Ron Reynolds (D) 8 Day Report: $13,324 Election Cycle: $54,986 Total Price Tag: $127,139 28 HD 27 Borris Miles (D-Inc) 8 Day Report: $35,600 Election Cycle: $52,150 Al Edwards (D) 8 Day Report: $19,975 Election Cycle: $45,125 Total Price Tag: $97,275

Twenty-eight candidates in highly competitive primary fights for Texas House seats that incumbents hope to win again raised more than $3.5 million combined during the past month as gambling interests, trial lawyers, tort reform advocates and several wealthy Texans who back Speaker Tom Craddick shelling out the most.

An analysis of campaign finance reports that were due this week at the Texas Ethics Commission shows that 16 House candidates - 11 current members and five challengers - in races for seats that incumbents hope to defend in the primary election on Tuesday rounded up a total $2.8 million during the past four weeks.

Four House candidates generated more than $200,000 during the period - with El Paso businessman Dee Margo leading the pack with contributions of $241,000 for his bid against State Rep. Pat Haggerty in the Republican primary election. Haggerty - a fierce Craddick foe - raised almost $170,000 from contributors during the past month.

The largest donations to a state House contender from a single contributor during the past month appeared to be $105,000 that Democratic challenger Sandra Rodriguez of Mission received from trial lawyers through the group known as the Texans for Insurance Reform PAC. The trial lawyer committee poured $358,000 into Texas politics during the period while its top rival, the Texans for Lawsuit Reform, reported spending $365,000 in that span of time.

State Rep. Phil King, a Weatherford Republican who's one of the speaker's top lieutenants, was the second most successful fundraiser during that time among House candidates in contested primary races with contributions of more than $227,000 in a four-week span. King's primary opponent, former Weatherford Mayor Joe Tison, raised $75,000 during the period.

Democratic challenger Tara Rios Ybarra of South Padre Island and Republican State Rep. Nathan Macias of Bulverde ranked third and fourth respectively in fundraising for contested House primary races during the past four weeks. Rios Ybarra, who's trying to unseat State Rep. Juan Escobar of Kingsville in next week's election, rasied $219,000 during the period with the help of a $100,000 loan. Macias reported contributions of $211,000 during the period for a primary battle with former New Braunfels Mayor Doug Miller, who raised $74,000 while getting an additional boost from television ads and direct mail that track owners and other racing interests used to attack Macias through the Texans for Economic Development PAC.

Miller received $20,000 from the Texans for Economic Development on January 28 - according to his new report - but returned the money on February 5. The TED PAC's ad blitz that targeted Macias, King and Republican State Rep. Betty Brown of Terrell got under way about 10 days after Miller gave the contribution back.

The Texans for Economic Development spent almost $357,000 during the past month - with more than half of that amount going to 18 House candidates in direct contributions. While blasting three Craddick supporters in the ad campaign, the group rallied behind three House Democrats who've backed the speaker with contributions of $25,000 to State Rep. Dawnna Dukes of Austin, $10,000 to State Rep. Kevin Bailey of Houston and $7,000 to State Rep. Aaron Pena of Edinburg for heated primary fights.

The TED PAC made contributions to three House Republicans including a $10,000 donation to Haggerty. The group, which supports the legalization of video lottery gambling at horse and dog racing tracks, also contributed $5,000 to State Rep. Frank Corte, a San Antonio lawmaker who chairs the House Republican Caucus. But the group gave contributions of $10,000 apiece to Democratic Caucus Chairman Jim Dunnam of Waco and the caucus co-leaders, State Reps. Garnet Coleman of Houston and Pete Gallego of Alpine.

Houston home builder Bob Perry - to no surprise - was the most generous individual donor during the past month while giving more than $300,000 to candidates in House races. San Antonio investor James Leininger, the state's most high-profile school vouchers advocate, contributed $100,000 to a handful of House candidates during that time after laying relatively low since spending several million dollars in an attempt to knock off a half-dozen moderate Republican incumbents in the primary election in 2006.

The two biggest donations that Leininger made in House primary races were $50,000 and $25,000 respectively to State Rep. Charles "Doc" Anderson of Waco and King. Anderson raised $181,000 during the past month while Republican challenger Jonathan Sibley combined a $100,000 loans with contributions of $15,000 in the same time frame. Anderson had trailed Sibley in fundraising throughout the race.

While Leininger gave exclusively to Republicans, Perry shared some wealth with the House Democrats who've been catching heat from primary foes for backing Craddick with contributions of $25,000 to Pena, $24,000 to Dukes, $23,500 to Bailey and $15,000 to Flores during the period. Perry also donated $25,000 to Rios Ybarra and $10,000 to former Houston City Council member Carol Alvarado for a Democratic primary race for an open House seat.

Irving investor Robert Rowling matched Leininger with contributions to candidates of $100,000 during the past month.

Empower Texans - a political action committee that supports conservative Republicans - spent more than $205,000 during the past month with contributions to about 10 House candidates who support Craddick's bid for a fourth term as speaker. The Empower Texans PAC donated $50,000 to Tom Annunziato for his primary battle with State Rep. Charlie Geren and gave $50,000 to Macias while providing those two candidates with several thousand dollars worth of in-kind help as well. Geren raised $170,000 during the past month while Annunziatio received contributions of $113,000 for his campaign during the period.