Two things to say about this story and other news concerning Congressional fundraising in Texas.
Sekula-Gibbs, a former Houston city councilwoman elected to fill in for DeLay until the next full House term started, topped all candidates for fundraising in the third quarter with $415,088 -- but only because of the $240,000 she loaned her campaign.Olson, the former chief of staff for Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, raised $217,825 in the 40 days since he entered the race, less than half the time other candidates had to raise money. Olson, whose high-profile backers include Cornyn and former Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, narrowly trailed Sekula-Gibbs in individual contributions, with $166,825 to her $173,353. Olson also loaned his campaign $50,000.
Lampson raised $325,319 in the three-month period, almost half of which came from political action committees and Democratic House colleagues. With $679,418 in the bank, Lampson has a commanding lead over his Republican rivals in cash on hand.
[...]
Among other Republican contenders in the March 4 primary, former Sugar Land Mayor Dean Hrbacek attracted $159,195, with the help of a $50,000 loan to his campaign. Trailing far behind were state Rep. Robert Talton with $34,700 and family court Judge Jim Squier with $13,400. The FEC had no record of a financial report from contender John Manlove, the former mayor of Pasadena who launched his campaign this month.
2. Looking at Vince's roundup of third-quarter numbers, CDs22 and 10 look to be the only interesting races next year, as things stand now. Yeah, I know, the GOP will make a run at CD23, but Ciro Rodriguez is in pretty good shape, and neither of his announced opponents looks particularly impressive. I may change my mind about this one, but right now I can't say I'm terribly worried.
I am disappointed that there's little real action going on in other places where Democrats had credible candidates last time, in particular CDs 31 and 32, which I believe are winnable with the right candidates and sufficient funds. There's still time, and at least CD31 has an active candidate, but it's not looking too good overall. I know, we'll be plenty busy with the Senate race, the Supreme Court, the House races, and all the action in Harris County, but still. It feels like a step backwards to me.
Posted by Charles Kuffner on October 18, 2007 to Election 2008