2026 candidate · follow the money
Who funds Catalina Lauf?
The money.
- Raised
- $1.9M
- Spent
- $2.0M
- Cash on hand
- $6,835
- Debts
- $25K
- Individuals 96% $1.8M
- PACs & other committees 2% $44K
- Candidate's own money & loans 1% $25K
- Other receipts 0.5% $9,830
Campaign totals through Sep 30, 2026. Excludes $105K moved between the candidate's own committees.
Outside groups: $3.2M supporting · $0 opposing
Biggest spenders supporting
Largest direct PAC contributions
Who gave.
Who gives $1.8M from individuals
52% in small-dollar gifts
$935K of $1.8M came unitemized: from donors whose gifts to the campaign this cycle total $200 or less, whom the campaign does not have to name.
Adding itemized gifts from donors whose itemized total is $200 or less, about 56%. Many small gifts sent through ActBlue or WinRed are itemized anyway, so the first figure runs low; this estimate groups donors by name and ZIP code as filed and counts only itemized gifts already in the FEC bulk file.
The itemized gifts below add up to $737K of the $879K the campaign reported itemizing through Sep 30, 2026. The FEC has not yet processed the rest into its bulk file, which runs to Sep 30, 2026 for this campaign.
18% from Florida · 82% from elsewhere
Of itemized gifts, by the state on each donor's mailing address. Giving from other states is lawful and common.
100% of itemized dollars came earmarked through a conduit such as ActBlue or WinRed; each gift is counted once.
Top states
- Florida $130K
- Texas $86K
- California $83K
- Illinois $47K
- Virginia $28K
- Georgia $25K
- New Jersey $23K
- Tennessee $22K
Retired, self-employed, not employed or not given: $607K. Employers named by fewer than three donors, or filed as a person's name: $130K, not listed so no one donor is singled out.
Summary through Sep 30, 2026. Itemized gifts dated Oct 2, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026, net of refunds (29,747 entries). Every itemized contribution on FEC.gov ↗
From the principal campaign committee's FEC reports; joint-fundraising transfers and later reports are not included, and no donor is named here. A contribution is not evidence of a vote, favor or wrongdoing.
Outside money in the final weeks.
Outside spending including late reports: $3.2M for / $0 against · $0 in the final two weeks
Source: FEC regular reports. The final two weeks run Oct 21, 2026 to Nov 3, 2026, by the date each ad or mailing went out.
What it bought, per the late reports
- Digital ads 53% $436K
- Ads, medium not stated 9% $72K
- Mail, print & signs 28% $230K
- Phones & texts 11% $90K
Largest late spenders for
Latest dissemination on these reports: August 18, 2026. FEC 24- and 48-hour independent-expenditure reports read November 4, 2026, with amended and re-filed reports counted once (29 entries). These reports on FEC.gov ↗
Outside spending is, by law, made without coordinating with the candidate and is not the candidate's money. Purposes are grouped from each spender's own description, so the groups are approximate. A dollar figure is not evidence of a vote, favor or wrongdoing.
Where it went.
Where the money went $1.8M in itemized spending
- Advertising & outreach 39% $708K
- Consultants & strategy 30% $546K
- Fundraising & processing fees 24% $434K
- Polling, research & data 3% $54K
- Travel, meals & events 0.3% $5,017
- Office, technology & overhead 0.3% $4,643
- Legal & compliance 2% $42K
- Other or unclassified 0.9% $16K
Largest payees
- GEN2 SOLUTIONS, LLC $659K
- WINRED TECHNICAL SERVICES $431K
- IMPERATOR $356K
- RED RENEGADE $60K
- IFA HOLDINGS LLC $45K
Paid to individuals: $99K, such as staff, contractors and reimbursements. People who were paid are not named here.
Payments dated Oct 3, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026, as itemized by the principal campaign committee in FEC reports (245 entries). Every payment on FEC.gov ↗
Grouped by each campaign's own description of the payment, so the groups are approximate. Payments of $200 or less to one payee need not be itemized, detail filed only as memo entries counts under other or unclassified, and spending by the candidate's other committees or by outside groups is not included. A payment is not evidence of a favor or wrongdoing.
Others who filed for this seat.
- James OberweisRepublican · $5.4M raised · $24K outside
- Chris CollinsRepublican · $3.4M raised · $1.3M outside
- Jim SchwartzelRepublican · $2.8M raised · $48K outside
- Madison CawthornRepublican · $876K raised
- Byron DonaldsRepublican · $660K raised · $57K outside
- Ola Nesheswat HawatmehRepublican · $278K raised
- John StrandRepublican · $144K raised
- Mike PedersenRepublican · $76K raised
- Victor M. AriasDemocrat · $70K raised
- Howard Lee SappDemocrat · $55K raised
- Robert M. Neeld Jr.Democrat · $29K raised
- Gregory BukowskiRepublican · $26K raised
Questions worth asking.
Money shows who backed a campaign, not how a person will act. Compare it with what they did and said: their votes or official actions if they have held office, their own statements, and their answers to a finding. Use the same questions for every candidate.
FEC bulk data read November 4, 2026. Campaign totals come from each filing's own FEC summary through its latest processed report. Outside spending is independent expenditures itemized in committee reports in the FEC bulk files, primaries included; late 24- and 48-hour reports, party coordinated spending, communication costs and groups that do not report to the FEC are not included. Outside spending is, by law, made without coordinating with the candidate, and it is not the candidate's money. A contribution or expenditure is not evidence of a vote, favor or wrongdoing. This page identifies the filing by its FEC candidate ID; a person can hold more than one filing.