Monthly campaign finance reports filed earlier this week show that donations made in February primarily accrued to the frontrunners in the various statewide races.
In the gubernatorial race, Senator Tommy Tuberville and former senator Doug Jones both received the most donations by far.
Tuberville received the most in donations of any single candidate last month. In total, he raised $1.05 million split between large and small donations. The largest single donations to the Tuberville campaign were $50,000 contributions from SDT Holdings, LLC, and Slocumb Law Firm.
Since launching his campaign last May, Tuberville has received over $11 million in total donations and spent almost $3 million. The February campaign finance report records that the campaign spent just over a quarter of a million last month, split mainly between advertising, fundraising, and polling and consultants.
In comparison, Jones received just over $300,000 in cash contributions in February. The former senator and Democratic candidate launched his campaign months after Tuberville in early December, but has raised over $1.3 million since filing to run.
The monthly expenditures for the campaign almost matched the number of donations received, with just under $280,000 spent, again mostly on fundraising and consultants. The Jones campaign only reported one major contribution last month, a $20,000 contribution from an individual donor.
In comparison to the gubernatorial race, the Republican primary for lieutenant governor is relatively open. Secretary of State Wes Allen, Commissioner of Agriculture Rick Pate and former state Republican Party chairman Nehemiah “John” Wahl are all seeking the nomination.
Last month, Allen received the most in campaign contributions of the three, with $213,300 in total donations compared to Pate’s $6,314.35 and Wahl’s $157,596.32.
Phillip Ensler, the presumptive Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, received a total of $26,633.63 in cash contributions last month. The largest single donation to his campaign was $5,000.
The attorney general race, which has been defined in part by large donations, saw both former state Supreme Court Justice Jay Mitchell and chief counsel to the attorney general Katherine Robertson raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for their respective campaigns last month.
Mitchell raised a skosh over $300,000 while Robertson raised just over $200,000. Both candidates also ended the month with a significant amount of cash on hand. Mitchell reported ending the month with over $2.6 million and Robertson reported a balance of just over $1.9 million.
The Robertson campaign also filed a major contribution report on Tuesday detailing a new $150,000 contribution from Frontline Leaders Action, Inc., a recently founded super PAC that also donated $300,000 to her campaign at the end of January.
Pamela Casey, the Blount County district attorney, raised a relatively meager $16,410 in cash contributions last month.
The only candidate to qualify for the Democratic primary for attorney general, Guntersville attorney and former state representative Jeff McLaughlin, has not filed a campaign finance report yet.
While former U.S. House candidate Caroleene Dobson’s main opponent in the Republican primary for secretary of state, current state auditor Andrew Sorrell, dropped out of the race in January, she still raised a hair above $38,000 in February. Sorrell, now running for reelection, reported receiving less than $2,000 in cash transactions but over $5,000 in in-kind transactions, all from himself.
The Democratic and Republican primaries for all statewide offices up for election this cycle will be held on May 19 this year. Any necessary runoffs will take place on June 16.
