The four Senate runoff candidates raised nearly $1.2 million combined since the March primary. In SD1, Rep. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola) out-raised Rep. David Simpson (R-Longview) nearly 3-to-1 and outspent him 3-to-1. Hughes has a $123K advantage in cash on hand.

Rep. Bryan Hughes

Rep. Bryan Hughes

Campaign Finance Summary

$169,817 – Cash on Hand

$483,129 – Contributions (2/21-5/14)
$418,304 – Expenditures (2/21-5/14)

$1,340,845 – Total Contributions (2015-16)
$1,197,948 – Total Expenditures (2015-16)

$0 – Loan Principal

Top Contributors Since the Primary

$155,000 – Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC

$27,500 – Texas Home School Coalition PAC

$25,000 – Texans for Education Reform PAC

$10,000 – AT&T Texas PAC, Empower Texans PAC, Stacy Hock, Cary Patterson, Texas Assoc. of Realtors TREPAC, Texas Farm Bureau AGFUND

$6,000 – Texas Medical Assoc. TEXPAC

$5,000 – Trevor Ahlberg, James Perkins, Texas Apartment Assoc. PAC, Texas Consumer Finance Assoc. PAC, Texas Friends of Time Warner Cable PAC, Texas Oil and Gas Assoc. PAC, Texas Restaurant Assoc. PAC, Texas State Assoc. of Fire Fighters PAC, Kathaleen Wall

Rep. David Simpson

sd1_simpson

Campaign Finance Summary

$46,167 – Cash on Hand

$171,910 – Contributions (2/21-5/14)
$138,684 – Expenditures (2/21-5/14)

$491,420 – Total Contributions (2015-16)
$663,234 – Total Expenditures (2015-16)

$0 – Loan Principal

Top Contributors Since the Primary

$20,000 – Phil Simpson

$10,000 – Baron & Budd PC, Vance Freeman, Gallagher Law Firm, Provost Umphrey Law Firm, Nelson Roach, Texas Trial Lawyers Assoc. PAC

$7,500 – John Baldwin

$5,014 – Texas Classroom Teachers Assoc. PAC

$5,000 – Bryan Blevins, Samuel Chantilis, Freeman Capital Ltd., Ledwell & Son Enterprises

$3,000 – Wayne Freeman

Both candidates have forged interesting coalitions of donors and interests. Hughes has the support of most business and trade association PACs, traditional large Republican donors and anti-Speaker Straus conservative groups. This combination has not occurred often in contested primary races during the last few election cycles. So far this campaign cycle, Texans for Lawsuit Reform has contributed $267K to Hughes, followed by Texans for Education Reform PAC ($75K) and Texas Assoc. of Realtors TREPAC ($62K).

Simpson’s donors include libertarian-minded conservatives, educators and trial lawyers. The latter two groups generally do not weigh in so heavily in Republican primary races.

In SD24, Rep. Susan King (R-Abilene) had her strongest fundraising period this cycle. She raised $209K since the primary, amounting to nearly three quarters of the total amount she has raised since January 2015. However, Dawn Buckingham raised nearly $100K more than King for the period, and she has raised nearly $500K more than King during the election cycle.

Rep. Susan King

sd24_king

Campaign Finance Summary

$156,963 – Cash on Hand

$209,220 – Contributions (2/21-5/14)
$323,798 – Expenditures (2/21-5/14)

$276,319 – Total Contributions (2015-16)
$1,277,291 – Total Expenditures (2015-16)

$670,000 – Loan Principal

Top Contributors Since the Primary

$20,000 – JC Walter III

$15,000 – Texas Medical Assoc. TEXPAC

$10,000 – Drayton McLane Jr., Burt Solomons, Texas Automobile Dealers Assoc. PAC

$5,000 – AT&T Texas PAC, Texas Academy of Family Physicians PAC, Texas Assoc. of Realtors TREPAC, Texas Classroom Teachers Assoc. PAC

Dawn Buckingham

sd24_buckingham

Campaign Finance Summary

$62,665 – Cash on Hand

$305,704 – Contributions (2/21-5/14)
$416,599 – Expenditures (2/21-5/14)

$758,388 – Total Contributions (2015-16)
$1,661,980 – Total Expenditures (2015-16)

$1,022,826 – Loan Principal

Top Contributors Since the Primary

$25,000 – Texas Home School Coalition PAC

$20,000 – Ellyn Yacktman

$15,370 – Texas Medical Assoc. TEXPAC

$15,000 – Alan Harper

$12,852 – Stacy Hock

$10,451 – Stephan Kelly

$10,000 – Robert Buckingham, Gary Farmer, Texas Farm Bureau AGFUND

$7,500 – Mayes Middleton

$5,000 – Doug Deason, Jack Hilliard, Sen. Charles Schwertner, Texas Ophthalmological Assoc. Eye-PAC, Texas Society of Anesthesiologists PAC

Both candidates have contributed more to themselves through loans than raised money from other donors. Combined, the candidates have nearly $1.7 million in loan principal, and they have raised just over $1 million combined.