The latest campaign finance news from The Texas Tribune.
West Texas voters rejected three conservative Christian candidates who sought to infuse religious values into local politics. The campaign support the candidates received from local churches has prompted calls for state and federal probes. Full Story
The U.S. House Democratic campaign arm will target the 15th Congressional District in next year’s elections, hoping to reclaim the seat from Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz, the first Republican ever to represent the district. Full Story
Congressional Republicans’ campaign arm will make another effort to unseat the South Texas Democrat who ran in one of the state’s most competitive races last year. Full Story
The Texas Republican’s campaign, which recouped most of the money, has reported the case to the FBI. The Federal Elections Commission is also looking into it. Full Story
O’Rourke’s campaign said they gave the money back before the company’s scandals became widely public, because they were taken aback by such a large unsolicited donation. Full Story
In the homestretch of the state’s governor race, Beto O’Rourke outraises incumbent Gov. Greg Abbott though he still trails in the polls. Full Story
The Democratic challenger ended the latest fundraising period, July 1 through Sept. 29, with slightly more cash on hand than the governor. Full Story
Starr County, one of the four counties that make up the Rio Grande Valley, has not been able to produce campaign finance reports that it is required to maintain, according to a GOP group targeting the area. Full Story
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The pricey fights illustrate how much of the action in Texas politics has shifted back to the primary after redistricting dramatically reduced the number of competitive seats. Full Story
The court’s three liberal justices dissented from the majority’s decision, saying that the ruling rewards politicians and paves the way for political corruption. Full Story
Michelle Vallejo faces Ruben Ramirez in a runoff for the Democratic nomination in the 15th Congressional District. A nonprofit that supports Vallejo is accused of breaking campaign finance rules. Full Story
The new Texas Sands PAC has already spread over half a million dollars across roughly three dozen primaries for the state House and Senate. Full Story
The amended report came 13 days after the deadline and as the attorney general nears a hotly contested primary in which his ethics are a top issue. Full Story
Paxton’s campaign admitted last week that it was having problems trying to report all his latest donor data and would file an amended report — but as of Tuesday, it had yet to do so. Full Story
The Supreme Court next month will hear arguments in his challenge to the law that prevents the repayment, prompting fears among watchdog groups that another rollback of campaign finance regulations might be looming. Full Story
Under a 2002 federal law, no more than $250,000 in contributions collected after an election may be used to repay a candidate’s loans to their campaign. Full Story
Bush started his Paxton challenge with a fundraising lead of $2.3 million to $1.8 million, but Paxton easily maintains the most cash on hand in a primary that also includes Eva Guzman, the former state Supreme Court justice. Full Story
The former state Supreme Court justice is one of two Republican primary challengers to Attorney General Ken Paxton, the other being Land Commissioner George P. Bush. Full Story
Abbott’s campaign coffers hit the balance after he raised over $18.7 million during the last 10 days of June, his campaign announced Thursday. The campaign said the cash-on-hand total was larger “than any other statewide candidate in Texas history.” Full Story
For months, Gov. Greg Abbott and the 2019 Texas Inaugural Committee fought to avoid disclosing how they spent a record-setting $5.3 million. The Texas Tribune sued and obtained the documents in an out-of-court settlement. Full Story
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