Speaker Doles Out Half-Million
to GOP Reps with Foes on Right
Capitol Inside
January 19, 2022
Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan sought to fortify his grip on the gavel when he pumped more than $500,000 into incumbent protection in recent months with contributions to a cadre of GOP representatives who are facing primary opposition in 2022.
A Beaumont product who celebrated his first anniversary at the helm of the House last week, Phelan dished out five-figure sums of campaign cash to 17 fellow House Republicans in the second half of 2021 based on campaign finance reports that the Texas Ethics Commission made public on Wednesday.
GOP State Rep. John Lujan of San Antonio - was the biggest beneficiary of Phelan generosity last year with contributions from the speaker of more than $71,000 for a special election that he won in a runoff last fall in House District 118.
But the GOP newest member - State Rep. Ryan Guillen of Rio Grande City - was a fairly close second after accepting $49,900 from Phelan in two chunks in December after cutting his ties with the Democrats and filing to seek an 11th term as a Republican.
Phelan raised almost $1.6 million for his own re-election race during the second half of 2021 when the Legislature was in special session for three full months. The speaker spent almost as much as he generated from supporters during that time before ending 2021 with $4.8 million in the campaign bank according to the report he filed this week at the Texas Ethics Commission.
While Phelan is running unopposed in the first round in his hometown district, he had ample cause to ramp up his fundraising machinery after Donald Trump threatened to field a primary challenger as revenge for refusing in two special sessions to let the House consider a Senate election audit bill.
Phelan contributed sums between $18,000 and $23,000 for polling and other campaign needs to GOP State Reps. Steve Allison of San Antonio, Ernest Bailes of Shepherd, Travis Clardy of Nacogdoches, Justin Holland of Heath, Kyle Kacal of College Station, Stephanie Klick of Fort Worth, Brooks Landgraf of Odessa, Glenn Rogers of Graford, Reggie Smith of Sherman, Lynn Stucky of Sanger, Valoree Swanson of Spring and Gary Vandeaver of New Boston..
The speaker also donated $12,500 to State Rep. Dustin Burrows - a Lubbock Republican who's one of Phelan's two most powerful lieutenants for a primary challenge this year.
Phelan contributed $100,000 to the Associated Republicans of Texas as well. That money will be funneled back into the House battlefield where the GOP expects to hold its majority in the Capitol's west wing with the possibility of adding to it in the November midterm election.
All of the House Republicans with contested primaries could be in trouble to some degree in round one with challengers running to the right in some case.
more to come ... |
|
|
| |
|
Morgan LaMantia
SD 27 - DEM
Contributions: $141,660
Campaign Loans: $750,000
Cash: $601,533
|
Mayes Middleton
SD 11 - GOP
Contributions: $1,685,523
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash: $1,334,556
|
Alex Dominguez
SD 27 - DEM
Contributions: 46,904
Campaign Loans: $110,000
Cash: $127,389
|
Robin Armstrong
SD 11 - GOP
Contributions: $91,789
Campaign Loans: $34,350
Cash: $127,389
|
Sara Stapleton-Barrera
SD 27 - DEM
Contributions: $11,778
Campaign Loans: $110,025
Cash: $2,816
|
Bianca Gracia
SD 11 - GOP
Contributions: $29,200
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash: $29,050
|
Salomon Torres
SD 27 - DEM
Contributions: $2,515
Campaign Loans: $2,223
Cash: $100
|
Bob Mitchell
SD 11 - GOP
Contributions: $100
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash: $100
|
| |
|
|
|
Ryan Guillen (Inc)
HD 31 - GOP
Contributions: $279,995
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $660,090 |
Dustin Burrows (Inc)
HD 83 - GOP
Contributions: $273,915
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $225,917
|
Glenn Rogers (Inc)
HD 60 - GOP
Contributions: $245,675
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $121,270 |
Jeff Leach (Inc)
HD 67 - GOP
Contributions: $234,997
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $147,793
|
Ernest Bailes (Inc)
HD 18 - GOP
Contributions: $212,816
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $163,199 |
Steve Toth (Inc)
HD 15 - GOP
Contributions: $197,429
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $204,132
|
Justin Holland (Inc)
HD 121 - GOP
Contributions: $187,919
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $228,162 |
Steve Allison (Inc)
HD 121 - GOP
Contributions: $182,102
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $106,105
|
Kyle Kacal (Inc)
HD 12 - GOP
Contributions: $175,020
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $209,265 |
Valoree Swanson (Inc)
HD 150 - GOP
Contributions: $167,826
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $154,572
|
Travis Clardy (Inc)
HD 11 - GOP
Contributions: $142,825
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $303,363 |
Gary Gates (Inc)
HD 28 - GOP
Contributions: $82,525
Campaign Loans: $60,000
Cash Dec 31: $30,754
|
Brooks Landgraf (Inc)
HD 81 - GOP
Contributions: $136,803
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $242,406 |
Lynn Stucky (Inc)
HD 64 - GOP
Contributions: $133,371
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $156,797
|
Bryan Slaton (Inc)
HD 2 - GOP
Contributions: $133,371
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $56,966 |
David Spiller (Inc)
HD 68 - GOP
Contributions: $132,068
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $127,631
|
Gio Capriglione (Inc)
HD 98 - GOP
Contributions: $127,340
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $263,206 |
Stephanie Klick (Inc)
HD 91 - GOP
Contributions: $121,198
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $307,008
|
Reggie Smith (Inc)
HD 53 - GOP
Contributions: $110,600
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $132,267 |
Andrew Murr (Inc)
HD 53 - GOP
Contributions: $103,650
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $219,784
|
Gary Vandeaver (Inc)
HD 1 - GOP
Contributions: $81,720
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $192,395 |
John Raney (Inc)
HD 14 - GOP
Contributions: $77,400
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $93,738
|
Cole Hefner (Inc)
HD 5 - GOP
Contributions: $70,062
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $237,331 |
Mike Schofield (Inc)
HD 132 - GOP
Contributions: $67,995
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $87,011
|
Stan Lambert (Inc)
HD 71 - GOP
Contributions: $65,701
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $199,569 |
Cecil Bell Jr. (Inc)
HD 3 - GOP
Contributions: $60,257
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $45,549
|
Matt Schaefer (Inc)
HD 6 - GOP
Contributions: $37,731
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $25,205 |
Lacey Hull (Inc)
HD 138 - GOP
Contributions: $34,069
Campaign Loans: $0
Cash Dec 31: $49,187
|
| |
|
| |
Source: Texas Ethics
Commission |
|
|
|
