Fairly Top Fundraiser in Race to Replace Four Price

FROM LEFT: Beyea, Bulla, Fairly, Quackenbush/Photos via respective campaigns

Caroline Fairly is the top fundraiser in the State House District 87 race, according to recently filed finance reports for the reporting period ending December 31st.

Fairly, a medical claims negotiator, reported raising $314,695.04. Her top donor was former Mayor of Amarillo Jerry Hodge, who donated $50,000. Other donors who gave more than $10,000 were A-G Administrators LLC, Kriss Cloninger III, Dixon Gillis, Steve Lapp, Benton IV Investments LLC, Rodney Cross, and Rajan Shah. Notably absent from her donor list is her father, businessman Alex Fairly.

Fairly also spent more than any other candidate in the District 87 race, with a total of $92,661.97 spent and $58,965.50 of reported unpaid incurred obligations. Fairly’s largest expense was spending $29,700 on polling with WPA Intelligence.

Fairly did not report having taken any loans and had $222,092.97 in cash on hand as of the end of the reporting period.

Coming in second place in terms of both contributions and expenses is realtor Cindi Bulla, who raised $148,758.99 during the reporting period. Bulla’s largest donor, and the only to have given over $10,000, was Texas REALTORS PAC, who gave a total of $75,000 to Bulla. Fairly wasn’t the only candidate to receive money from a former Amarillo mayor, with Paul Harpole having given $250 to Bulla’s campaign. Kevin Nelson, the treasurer for retiring incumbent Four Price and husband to former Mayor of Amarillo Ginger Nelson gave $1,041.98.

Bulla had spent $24,108.07 and had $9,562.90 in unpaid incurred obligations as of the end of the reporting period. Most of Bulla’s spending has gone to her campaign consultant Murphy Nasica, who had been paid $20,671.41. (The entirety of Bulla’s unpaid incurred obligations are also due to be paid to Murphy Nasica.)

Bulla also reported having given her campaign a $5,000 loan. She had $127,121.10 in cash on hand as of the end of the reporting period.

When comparing the geographic source of the donations to the two largest fundraisers in the race, both had a similar percentage coming from Amarillo. Fairly reported having received 43.85% of her money raised from Amarillo donors, while Bulla had 44.57% of money raised coming from Amarillo donors.

Coming in third place in terms of fundraising and spending is attorney Jesse Quackenbush, who raised $13,326.13 and spent $9,645.27. Quackenbush was his own largest contributor, having given his campaign $11,771.13.

Sir Speedy was Quackenbush’s largest expense, with his campaign reportedly spending $3,295.63 on advertising with the company. Coming in a close second was $3,000 spent with Burkett Outdoor Advertising, LP.

While both Fairly and Bulla had just under half of their money coming from Amarillo-based donors, Quackenbush reported that 96.25% of the money he raised came from the city.

The fourth candidate in the race, Perryton ISD Board vice chair Richard Beyea, did not report any contributions nor any expenses during the reporting period.

While Fairly, Bulla, Quackenbush, and Beyea are battling it out for the Republican Party nomination, Democrat Timothy Gassaway is unopposed in his campaign for his party’s nomination. The only financial activity reported by Gassaway during the reporting period was a $750 filing fee grant from Blue Horizon Texas PAC.