2026 candidate · follow the money
Who funds Chris Gober?
The money.
- Raised
- $2.8M
- Spent
- $2.9M
- Cash on hand
- $166K
- Debts
- $750K
- Individuals 27% $765K
- PACs & other committees 10% $279K
- Candidate's own money & loans 63% $1.7M
- Other receipts <0.1% $2,473
Campaign totals through Oct 14, 2026. Excludes $307K moved between the candidate's own committees.
Outside groups: $1.6M supporting · $0 opposing
Biggest spenders supporting
Largest direct PAC contributions
Who gave.
Who gives $765K from individuals
2% in small-dollar gifts
$12K of $765K came unitemized: from donors whose gifts to the campaign this cycle total $200 or less, whom the campaign does not have to name.
73% from Texas · 27% from elsewhere
Of itemized gifts, by the state on each donor's mailing address. Giving from other states is lawful and common.
51% of itemized dollars came earmarked through a conduit such as ActBlue or WinRed; each gift is counted once.
Top states
- Texas $497K
- Virginia $50K
- California $22K
- New York $21K
- Missouri $13K
- District of Columbia $13K
- Maryland $12K
- Florida $9,500
Top employers named by donors
- LEX POLITICA PLLC $11K
Employers as donors wrote them on the form. A company listed here did not give this money; people who work there did.
Retired, self-employed, not employed or not given: $281K. Employers named by fewer than three donors, or filed as a person's name: $386K, not listed so no one donor is singled out.
Summary through Oct 14, 2026. Itemized gifts dated Oct 14, 2025 to Jun 18, 2026, net of refunds (338 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: $1.6M for / $0 against · $0 in the final two weeks
That is $9,842 more than the $1.6M in regular reports alone. Source: FEC regular reports plus 24- and 48-hour reports they do not yet cover. 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 38% $602K
- Ads, medium not stated 38% $600K
- Mail, print & signs 21% $333K
- Phones & texts 2% $24K
- Ad production 1% $22K
Largest late spenders for
Latest dissemination on these reports: October 14, 2026. FEC 24- and 48-hour independent-expenditure reports read November 4, 2026, with amended and re-filed reports counted once (41 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 $1.5M in itemized spending
These itemized payments cover $1.5M of the $2.9M the campaign reported spending through Oct 14, 2026. The FEC has not yet itemized the rest in its bulk file, which runs to Jun 30, 2026.
- Advertising & outreach 59% $896K
- Consultants & strategy 14% $216K
- Staff & payroll 5% $71K
- Fundraising & processing fees 7% $103K
- Polling, research & data 4% $63K
- Travel, meals & events 5% $80K
- Office, technology & overhead 4% $55K
- Legal & compliance 2% $32K
- Contributions, transfers & refunds 0.3% $4,050
- Other or unclassified 0.4% $6,816
Largest payees
- STRATEGIC MEDIA PLACEMENT $556K
- BIG DOG STRATEGIES $307K
- POOLHOUSE AGENCY $90K
- LILLY & COMPANY $83K
- FABRIZIO LEE $42K
Paid to individuals: $130K, such as staff, contractors and reimbursements. People who were paid are not named here.
Payments dated Oct 20, 2025 to Jun 30, 2026, as itemized by the principal campaign committee in FEC reports (322 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.
- Caitlin McClay RourkDemocrat · $576K raised
- Walter Benjamin BiusRepublican · $454K raised
- Kara KingRepublican · $231K raised
- Jessica KarlsruherRepublican · $199K raised · $12K outside
- Rob AltmanRepublican · $193K raised
- Scott MacleodRepublican · $185K raised
- Michael McCaulRepublican · $150K raised
- Sarah EckhardtDemocrat · $111K raised
- Sarah EckhardtDemocrat · $111K raised
- Tayhlor ColemanDemocrat · $77K raised
- Jeremy StoryRepublican · $29K raised
- Jennifer SharonRepublican · $19K 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.