Here’s how much Texas candidates raised in the state’s hottest U.S. House primaries
For many Texas congressional races, Wednesday was the most consequential day yet on the primary calendar.
That was the deadline for U.S. House and Senate campaigns to file finance reports covering the last three months of 2017. Those watching the races closely are sure to pore over the mishmash of donations and expenditures to separate viable candidates from the long shots.
And that weeding out process could be more intense than past years. Of the eight Texans in Congress who are not running for re-election, six waited until the fall to announce their decisions, prompting late scrambles for those open seats.
Over in the U.S. Senate, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, was easily outraised by his leading Democratic challenger, U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-El Paso.
Texas is hosting the first statewide primaries of 2018 on March 6. Early voting begins on Feb. 20.
Here are what candidates in some of the state’s hottest U.S. House primary races are reporting:
U.S. House, District 2 (Republican)
U.S. Rep. Ted Poe, R-Humble, is retiring. Nine Republicans are competing for the party nomination to succeed him in the historically conservative district. Five Democrats are also running for the seat. Kathaleen Wall, the longtime GOP donor and activist, towered over the primary field with over $2.7 million raised, almost all of it out of her pocket. Houston State Rep. Kevin Roberts raised the most from other people — $260,000 — and then loaned himself $270,000. Businessman Rick Walker also loaned himself a big amount — $300,000 — as he took in $67,000 in contributions.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R | Kathaleen Wall | $2,744,693 | $2,310,335 |
| R | Kevin Roberts | 261,311 | 444,624 |
| R | Dan Crenshaw | 82,368 | 74,074 |
| R | Rick Walker | 67,492 | 253,870 |
| R | Jonny Havens | 31,916 | 94,756 |
| R | Jon Spiers | 31,055 | 39,689 |
| R | David Balat | 8,902 | 83,186 |
| R | Malcolm Whittaker | 4,235 | 1,021 |
| R | Justin L. Lurie | 0 | -181 |
U.S. House, District 5 (Republican)
Eight Republicans are running to succeed U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Dallas, who is retiring. One Democrat, Dan Woods, is also running. Bunni Pounds, who has Hensarling’s support, has emerged as the fundraising leader in the GOP race, raising $215,000 in a little over a month and reporting $197,000 cash on hand. The other prominent candidates — including state Rep. Lance Gooden, former state Rep. Kenneth Sheets and Jason Wright — didn’t come close to Pounds in either total raised or cash on hand.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R | Bunni Pounds | $214,840 | $196,704 |
| R | Lance Gooden | 112,155 | 86,342 |
| R | Kenneth Sheets | 107,736 | 82,188 |
| R | Jason Wright | 95,884 | 94,033 |
| R | Sam Deen | 41,272 | 30,177 |
| R | David Williams | Did not file | |
| R | Danny Campbell | Did not file | |
| R | Charles Lingerfelt | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 6 (Republican)
U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Ennis, is retiring. Eleven Republicans are running for the nomination in this district, which is expected to stay in the GOP column. Five Democrats are also running.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R | J.K. "Jake" Ellzey | $68,568 | $65,694 |
| R | Shannon Dubberly | 36,465 | 39,291 |
| R | Ron Wright | 24,321 | 21,800 |
| R | Mark Mitchell | 150 | 4,313 |
| R | Shawn Dandridge | 1 | 946 |
| R | Troy Ratterree | Did not file | |
| R | Thomas Dillingham | Did not file | |
| R | Kevin Harrison | Did not file | |
| R | Ken Cope | Did not file | |
| R | Deborah Gagliardi | Did not file | |
| R | Mel Hassell | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 7 (Democrat)
Seven Democrats are vying for the chance to take on U.S. Rep. John Culberson, R-Houston. Culberson also faces a challenger in his Republican primary.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Alex Triantaphyllis | $258,685 | $633,709 |
| D | Laura Moser | 214,967 | 329,492 |
| D | Lizzie Pannill Fletcher | 200,899 | 437,366 |
| D | Jason Westin | 127,501 | 249,656 |
| D | James Cargas | 16,371 | 12,268 |
| D | Joshua A. Butler | 7,935 | 3,932 |
| D | Ivan Sanchez | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 16 (Democrat)
U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-El Paso, is vacating the seat to run for U.S. Senate. Five Democrats are running for the nomination to succeed him in this Democratic-dominated district. Veronica Escobar, the former El Paso County judge, had a strong fundraising quarter, raking in $286,000. Yet Dori Fenenbock, the former El Paso school board president who has been in the race longer, maintains a cash-on-hand advantage, largely due to a $200,000 loan Fenenbock made to herself in the fourth quarter, following a combined $100,000 in personal loans during the two periods before that. Two Republicans are also running for the seat.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Veronica Escobar | $285,975 | $401,604 |
| D | Dori Fenenbock | 64,591 | 451,127 |
| D | Enrique Garcia | 4,274 | 2,116 |
| D | Norma Chavez | Did not file | |
| D | John Carrillo | Did not file | |
| D | Jerome Tilghman | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 21 (Democrat)
U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith, R-San Antonio, is retiring. Democrats see small signs of hope that they might be able to compete for this normally Republican seat in the fall.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Joseph Kopser | $260,858 | $337,338 |
| D | Derrick Crowe | 50,963 | 20,339 |
| D | Elliott McFadden | 21,330 | 30,997 |
| D | Mary Street Wilson | 2,525 | 518 |
U.S. House, District 21 (Republican)
A crowded, 18-person field is vying for the GOP nomination to succeed Smith.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R | Chip Roy | $200,211 | $194,631 |
| R | William Negley | 144,582 | 218,437 |
| R | Jason Isaac | 141,471 | 103,612 |
| R | Jenifer Sarver | 90,056 | 83,829 |
| R | Susan Narvaiz | 39,042 | 24,210 |
| R | Robert Stovall | 21,620 | 44,119 |
| R | Matt McCall | 20,575 | 105,270 |
| R | Foster Hagen | 13,685 | 0 |
| R | Autry J. Pruitt | 13,166 | 854 |
| R | Samuel Temple | 13,042 | 4,997 |
| R | Ivan Andarza | 7,497 | 3,510 |
| R | Francisco "Quico" Canseco | 7,225 | 131,654 |
| R | Anthony J. White | 4,000 | 576 |
| R | Ryan Krause | 757 | 321 |
| R | Al M. Poteet | 350 | 487 |
| R | Mauro Garza | 0 | 168 |
| R | Eric Burkhart | Did not file | |
| R | Peggy Wardlaw | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 23 (Democrat)
Five Democrats are competing for the chance to take on U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, in the fall. Hurd also has a Republican challenger.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Gina Ortiz Jones | $213,052 | $169,463 |
| D | Jay Hulings | 210,050 | 281,426 |
| D | Judy Canales | 16,960 | 6,972 |
| D | Rick Treviño | 10,786 | 2,777 |
| D | Angela "Angie" Villescaz | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 27 (Republican)
U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi, is retiring. Six Republicans are running to succeed him in the Republican-leaning district. Four Democrats are also running for the seat.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R | Bech Bruun | $124,305 | $119,490 |
| R | Michael Cloud | 44,335 | 32,579 |
| R | John Grunwald | Did not file | |
| R | Jerry Hall | Did not file | |
| R | Eddie Gassman | Did not file | |
| R | Christopher K. Mapp | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 29 (Democrat)
U.S. Rep. Gene Green, D-Houston, is retiring. Seven Democrats are running to succeed him in this heavily Democratic seat. Four Republicans are also running for the seat.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Tahir Javed | $247,775 | $552,791 |
| D | Sylvia R. Garcia | 201,380 | 209,626 |
| D | Roel Garcia | 11,837 | 35,123 |
| D | Pedro Valencia | 2,398 | 1,895 |
| D | Hector Morales | 158 | 260 |
| D | Dominique Michelle Garcia | Did not file | |
| D | Augustine H. Reyes | Did not file | |
U.S. House, District 32 (Democrat)
Seven Democrats are competing for a shot to take on U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Dallas. Sessions also faces a challenger in his Republican primary.
| Candidate | Amount raised | Cash on hand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Ed Meier | $217,751 | $500,370 |
| D | Colin Allred | 162,216 | 127,638 |
| D | Lillian Salerno | 161,454 | 157,027 |
| D | Brett Shipp | 46,969 | 26,191 |
| D | George Rodriguez | 31,384 | 23,274 |
| D | Todd Maternowski | 3,015 | -958 |
| D | Ron Marshall | 0 | -20 |
Patrick Svitek contributed to this report.
Joseph Kopser has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.