Campaign money floods El Paso races

Feb. 26--AUSTIN -- As next Tuesday's primary approaches, torrents of money are pouring into two El Paso House races.

During the period from Jan. 24 to Feb. 22, almost $600,000 flowed into the Democratic House races in Districts 76 and 77.

"El Paso has more competitive House races than the rest of the state combined," Mark P. Jones, chairman of the Rice University Political Science Department, said Tuesday.

The primary drawing the most money is the District 77 primary, in which Lyda Ness-Garcia is challenging incumbent state Rep. Marisa Marquez.

Ness-Garcia received $240,925 in contributions, compared with $177,560 that Marquez received.

The figures were published early Tuesday by the Texas Ethics Commission after a midnight deadline for candidates to report their fundraising eight days before the election.

Ness-Garcia, herself an attorney, received $191,500 from a single source -- the Texas Association of Consumer Lawyers, a group that was founded by Houston trial lawyer Steve Mostyn. She also received $34,608 from Texans for Insurance Reform, a group Mostyn has made hefty contributions to in the past and $3,390 from Mostyn's law firm.

Marquez raised $177,560 over the same period. She received contributions from 78 separate donors compared with Ness-Garcia's 52. But 65 percent of her contributions -- $115,402 -- came from a single donor, Texans for Lawsuit Reform.

Mostyn split off from the Texas Association of Trial Lawyers to establish his group in part to oppose Texans for Lawsuit Reform.

According to the reports, Ness-Garcia far outspent Marquez over the 30 day period -- $178,948 to $63,431.

Of Ness-Garcia's spending, more than $130,000 went to Buying Time LLC, a Washington, D.C., firm that helps develop and place campaign ads and tracks those of opponents.

Of the money Marquez received from Texans for Lawsuit Reform, almost all of it -- $110,000 -- went to television advertising.

As the campaign moves into its fevered final days, Ness-Garcia reports more cash on hand, $29,108, than Marquez's $16,377.

But Jones, of Rice University, said the race is Marquez's to lose.

"Unless the incumbent has a pretty significant flaw or made a pretty serious error in the campaign, it's pretty hard to unseat her," he said.

El Paso's other hotly contested primary for the District 76 seat attracted $164,377 in contributions between Jan. 24 and Feb. 22. The money flowed to three candidates in the Democratic primary: incumbent state Rep. Naomi Gonzalez, former state Rep. Norma Chavez and Cesar Blanco, former chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Pete Gallego.

Blanco led the financial race with $88,938 in contributions from 73 separate donors. Texans for Insurance Reform, however, was responsible for 64 percent of those donations, or $56,590.

Gonzalez took in the second-biggest haul in the race, receiving $70,491 from 57 contributors. Her biggest single contribution was the $20,000 she received from Texans for Lawsuit Reform, which has been a big supporter throughout the campaign.

Chavez raised only $4,948 from 24 donors. Her largest contributor was El Paso businessman Tanny Berg, who gave $1,600. Chavez, however, has loaned her campaign $90,000 after receiving an early inheritance from her parents.

Gonzalez far outspent her challengers over the 30-day period covered by the latest report -- $76,386 to Blanco's $36,073 and Chavez' $37,360.

That might be because Gonzalez is desperate to avoid a runoff, Jones said. The race will go to a May 27 runoff between the top two vote getters if nobody gets more than 50 percent Tuesday.

"If you're the incumbent, the default is that you're going to win," Jones said.

Also in a runoff, Gonzalez a four-year incumbent, would face unified opposition while such voters will be split between Blanco and Chavez on Tuesday, Jones said.

At the end of the most recent reporting period, Gonzalez's war chest has $16,948, Blanco's $26,763 and Chavez's $31,380.

If there is a runoff, the candidates will have to devote much of their time and resources to knocking on doors and persuading voters to come out again, Jones said.

"May 27 is going to be an all-ground game," he said.

In El Paso's other contested House races, challengers' fundraising was far behind the incumbents.

In District 75, Rey Sepulveda raised $280 over the most recent reporting period, compared with state Rep. Mary Gonzalez's$71,422.

In District 79, state Rep. Joe Pickett raised $69,173, while Chuck Peartree raised $100.

Marty Schladen may be reached at 512-479-6606.

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