Cash flows into congress contests

The latest quarterly campaign finance reports have been released by the Federal Election Commission which tracks the campaign contributions and expenditures for congressional candidates. The totals come in before the May 22 runoff elections where Gonzales County voters will have the opportunity to choose between two Democrats and two Republicans in the race to replace former Rep. Blake Farenthold, who has since fled from office.

Leading the haul is Bech Bruun, a Corpus Christi resident and former chair of the Texas Water Development Board. He boasts a war chest of $460,251.17 in contributions. Of that, $91,750 have come from committees other than individuals.

Bruun has received several $5,000 contributions from various political action committees. A sample of his big backers are the National Beer Wholesalers Association PAC, National Automobile Dealers Association PAC, National Cattleman's Beef Association PAC, and Bass Brothers Enterprises Inc. PAC. He also lists a slew of $2,700, $2,500, and $1,000 individual contributions.

He has also spent mightily, doling out $321,127.64 for his campaign. Among that are receipts for $100,000 to Hot Media LLC, $29,054.57 for direct mail services, $12,893,97 to Steve Ray Associates for general campaign consulting, and $10,202.56 to Arrow Display Signs for campaign signage. He currently has $139,123.53 cash on hand.

His GOP opponent, media company owner and Victoria County GOP Party Chair Michael Cloud, lists $173,383.75 in total contributions with just $5,500 coming from groups other than individuals. Many amounts in the range of $1,000-2,700 come from single donors.

Cloud has spent $110,747.45 on his campaign. Some tallies include $11,978 to Jamestown Associates for radio ads, $9,098 for campaign signs, $2,500 to Micah Roth for campaign management consulting, and a smattering of transaction fees for his fundraising site. He lists $62,636.30 cash on hand.

On the Democratic ticket, Eric Holguin — a Corpus Christi resident and former city council candidate — lists $39,056.39 in contributions. His largest is a $1,200 individual check with totals ranging from $50-1,000. He has spent $33,084.19 with $1,625.13 to rent a venue for fundraising and $1,250 to Knightstorm Productions for a campaign video. The rest is spent among consulting fees, office supplies, signs, and Facebook ads.