Time for an Empower Texans candidate (ETs) snapshot. ETs are on the ballot as Republicans, but I separate them due to donor mix. What will follow is a snapshot of the 19 ET endorsed House candidates still on the ballot (23 endorsed / funded ETs are out). #txlege
As you read through the thread, I'll be using shorthand to save characters.
ET / TRL = Empower Texas and Texas Right To Life. Both are funded by the same folks.
ET9 = Top 9 donors to Empower Texans
ETR = Big $ donors / campaigns who exclusively give to ET candidates
Kyle Biedermann (HD73) running against Stephanie Phillips (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $336,600
422 donations
$797 avg
ET / TRL - $167,713 (49.9%)
ET9 - $5k (1.4%)
ETR - $30.5k (9%)
ET World Total - $203k (60.3%)
Top 9 donors - $227.8k (67.7%) #txlege (1/19)
Jonathan Boos (HD113) running against Rhetta Bowers (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $145,975
757 donations
$192 avg
ET / TRL - $32,800 (22.5%)
ET9 - $8.5k (5.8%)
ETR - $35.9k (24.6%)
ET World Total - $77.2k (52.8%)
Top 9 donors - $94k (64.5%) #txlege (2/19)
Briscoe Cain (HD128) with no opponent in November
Since 01/01/17 raised $224,434
406 donations
$552 avg
ET / TRL - $27k (12%)
ET9 - $102k (45.4%)
ETR - $22.5k (10%)
ET World Total - $151.5k (67.5%)
Top 9 donors - $150k (66.8%) #txlege (3/19)
Cole Hefner (HD5) running against Bill Liebbe (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $94,055
169 donations
$556 avg
ET / TRL - $10k (10.6%)
ET9 - $0
ETR - $0
ET World Total - $10k (10.6%)
Top 9 donors - $33k (35%) #txlege (4/19)
Matt Krause (HD93) running against Nancy Bean (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $105,913
194 donations
$545 avg
ET / TRL - $11k (10.3%)
ET9 - $6k (5.6%)
ETR - $0
ET World Total - $17k (16%)
Top 9 donors - $41k (38.7%) #txlege (5/19)
Mike Lang (HD60) with no opponent in November
Since 01/01/17 raised $550,067
435 donations
$1,264 avg
ET / TRL - $193.8k (35.2%)
ET9 - $193.9k (35.2%)
ETR - $34.3k (6.2%)
ET World Total - $422k (76.7%)
Top 9 donors - $440k (80%) #txlege (6/19)
Jeff Leach (HD67) running against Sarah Depew (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $150,499
157 donations
$958 avg
ET / TRL - $11k (7.3%)
ET9 - $8k (5.3%)
ETR - $1k (0.6%)
ET World Total - $20k (13.3%)
Top 9 donors - $74.7k (49.6%) #txlege (7/19)
Deanna Metzger (HD107) running against Victoria Neave (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $176,638
233 donations
$758 avg
ET / TRL - $100,500 (56.9%)
ET9 - $31k (17.5%)
ETR - $15k (8.5%)
ET World Total - $146.5k (82.9%)
Top 9 donors - $155.9k (88.3%) #txlege (8/19)
Mayes Middleton (HD23) running against Amanda Jamrok (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $1,700,573
701 donations
$2,425 avg
ET / TRL - $0
ET9 - $1.5MM (88.5%)(self funded 1.47MM)
ETR - $11k (0.6%)
ET World Total - $1.515MM (89%)
Top 9 donors - $1.54MM (90.9%) #txlege (9/19)
Jared Patterson (HD106) running against Ramona Thompson (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $219,853
392 donations
$560 avg
ET / TRL - $64,738 (29.4%)
ET9 - $11k (5%)
ETR - $26.4k (12%)
ET World Total - $102k (46.4%)
Top 9 donors - $121.4k (55.2%) #txlege (10/19)
Matt Rinaldi (HD115) running against Julie Johnson (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $162,336
355 donations
$457 avg
ET / TRL - $17k (10.4%)
ET9 - $9.5k (5.8%)
ETR - $12k (7.4%)
ET World Total - $38.5k (23.7%)
Top 9 donors - $72.6k (44.7%) #txlege (11/19)
Lisa Luby Ryan (HD114) running against John Turner (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $541,836
675 donations
$802 avg
ET / TRL - $56,275 (10.3%)
ET9 - $0
ETR - $5k (1%)
ET World Total - $61,275 (11.3%)
Top 9 donors - $185.7k (34%) #txlege (12/19)
Matt Schaefer (HD6) running against Neal Katz (I)
Since 01/01/17 raised $151,342
291 donations
$520 avg
ET / TRL - $39.7k (26.2%)
ET9 - $7k (4.6%)
ETR - $15.1k (10%)
ET World Total - $61.8k (40.8%)
Top 9 donors - $75k (49.5%) #txlege (13/19)
Matt Shaheen (HD66) running against Sharon Hirsch (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $146,413
188 donations
$778 avg
ET / TRL - $10k (6.8%)
ET9 - $8k (5.4%)
ETR - $1k (0.6%)
ET World Total - $19k (13%)
Top 9 donors - $55k (37.5%) #txlege (14/19)
Jonathan Stickland (HD92) running against Steve Riddell (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $428,285
702 donations
$610 avg
ET / TRL - $121,800 (28.4%)
ET9 - $157,000 (36.6%)
ETR - $34.6k (8%)
ET World Total - $313.4k (73%)
Top 9 donors - $316.8k (74%) #txlege (15/19)
Valoree Swanson (HD150) running against Michael Shawn Kelly (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $132,494
185 donations
$716 avg
ET / TRL - $42k (31.7%)
ET9 - $7k (5.2%)
ETR - $27.8k (21%)
ET World Total - $76.8k (58%)
Top 9 donors - $87.5k (66%) #txlege (16/19)
Tony Tinderholt (HD94) running against Finnigan Jones (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $71,714
170 donations
$421 avg
ET / TRL - $28k (39%)
ET9 - $7k (9.7%)
ETR - $7.3k (10.2%)
ET World Total - $42.3k (59%)
Top 9 donors - $48.5k (67.6%) #txlege (17/19)
Steve Toth (HD15) running against Lorena Perez McGill (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $166,623
258 donations
$645 avg
ET / TRL - $43.5k (26.1%)
ET9 - $3.5k (2.1%)
ETR - $15k (9%)
ET World Total - $62k (37.2%)
Top 9 donors - $93k (55.8%) #txlege (18/19)
Bill Zedler (HD96) running against Ryan E. Ray (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $39,322
45 donations
$873 avg
ET / TRL - $10k (25.4%)
ET9 - $7k (17.8%)
ETR - $350 (0.9%)
ET World Total - $17.3k (44.1%)
Top 9 donors - $29.6k (75.4%) #txlege (19/19)
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
We can add Kel Seliger in SD31 to the list of Republicans being attacked by Empower Texans as we head to the general. Rather than “money from Austin”, it’s switched up to money outside his district. #txlege
Tim Dunn and ET World seems like they are really mad about wasting all that money on Mike Canon.
$349k - Empower Texans
$50k - Kyle Stallings
$20k - Texas Right To Life
$20k - Tim Dunn
$10k - Dick Saulsbury #txlege
And wasting all that money on Stuart Spitzer in HD4
$183k - Empower Texans
$57k - Texas Right To Life
$40k - Darlene Pendery
$36k - Jonathan Strickland Campaign
$18k - Stacy Hock
$10k - Constituents Focus
And on and on and on #txlege
Tim Dunn and Empower Texans are sending out letters to folks in House District 2, attacking Dan Flynn, the Republican incumbent. Yes, thats right. The republican incumbent is being attacked by the extreme end of the republican party as we near the general election. #txlege
First off, Empower is telling people to use transparency texas . org for campaign finance data. This is a site with campaign finance stuff, but what they don't tell you is that Empower Texans owns the site. Show up for data, read Empower propaganda. Not very transparent. #txlege
Empower is attacking Dan Flynn for 52% of his contributions coming from Austin. And yes, the 52% is a real number. Flynn has had $430k contributed to his campaign since 01/01/17, with 52% of it coming from an Austin address. #txlege
Since Jessica was good enough to bring up Paxton and Empower and declare "He's their man", I thought I pull together a mini-thread and few pie charts to help illustrate that fact. #txlege
In the 2014 election cycle, Ken Paxton was running for AG for the first time. From 01/01/2013 - 12/31/2014, Paxton raised:
$8,323,245 from 3,951 donors
$4,443,856 (53%) from the top 100 donors
$1,098,470 came from ET World (DOES NOT include a $1,000,000 loan from ET) #txlege
When you look at the Ken Paxton 2014 election cycle, the ET World money breaks down as:
Empower Texans - $402,470 (does not include a $1,000,000 loan from ET to Paxton)
ET9 (major ET donors) - $600,000
ETR (ET related donors) - $96,000
Total - $1.1m
2014 - He's their man #txlege
Looks like Texas Alliance For Life is doing "pay to play" advertising for some candidates.
02/25 - Mailer supporting Jason Villalba $11,886
02/28 - Villalba donation for $12k
02/28 - Mailer supporting JD Sheffield $10,483
06/08 - Sheffield donation for $11k #txlege
And then there is a $17k donation from Texas House Leadership Fund to Texas Alliance For Life on 03/14. Right after TAFL had spent $16,657 on mailers for Capriglione & Cosper ($13k on 02/28), and Clardy ($3.6k on 03/02), all candidates that THL had supported. #txlege
I know stuff like this has just been “politics”. This is the kind of thing the Empower World does, specifically with the New Leadership PAC (which I’ve talked about before). Please, let’s be better than that and not stoop to that level.
I've looked at the 19 Empower Texans candidates still on the ballot. Some serious money pouring in, dominating a candidates finance report. It's even more startling when you see the 23 candidates who didn't advance in the primaries.
23 Empower Texans endorsed / funded by the ET World candidates got knocked out in the primaries. There was A LOT of money poured into these candidates from all across ET World. The graphic shows you just how much ET World filled up their coffers vs regular folks. #txlege
There are just 4 knocked out ET World candidates who received less than 50% of their money from an ET / ET related source:
43% Susanna Dokupil
41% Brandon Hall
35% Chris Fails
0.2% Amber Pearce (late endorsement in a crowded field, but not any money of note)
This is nuts #txlege
What will follow is a snapshot of the contributions and donors to each Texas Senate race. I'll post the candidates by Republican, Empower, and Democrat. Pies will be added in fits and starts, but all will be in this thread.
SD2
Bob Hall (E) running against Kendall Scudder (D)
Since 01/01/17 raised $1,382,313
657 donations
$2,103 avg
ET / TRL - $503k (36.4%)
ET9 - $208.5k (15%)
ETR - $269k (19.4%)
ET World Total - $980.5k (71%)
Top Donors
- Empower Texans ($393k)
- Dan Patrick ($247k) #txlege
SD2
Kendall Scudder (D) running against Bob Hall (E)
Since 01/01/17 raised $131,596
920 donations
$143 avg
Top Donors
- Cristan Shamburger ($39.8k) 30%
- Kolby Flowers ($20k) 15%
Donations from
- Commerce 32.4%
- Dallas 16.9%
- Forest Hills 15.2% #txlege