SerpApi.Org
Former San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg has more than 12 times as much campaign cash as his Republican opponent in the race to become the next Bexar County judge.
Nirenberg had more than $66,000 in his campaign account as of June 30, compared with Republican candidate Patrick Von Dohlen's $5,400, according to recent campaign finance reports.
Nirenberg's report covers his fundraising between Feb. 22 and June 30, which includes the final push before the March 3 Democratic primary election, when he toppled County Judge Peter Sakai. Von Dohlen, a conservative activist, was unopposed in the primary, so his recent fundraising numbers cover the first six months of this year.
ALSO READ: Mayor Jones proposes killing Ready to Work to close budget deficit
The former mayor raised $160,000 since Feb. 22, more than 80% of which came after the primary. Since the primary, many donors tied to local construction and development companies have given to Nirenberg's campaign.
That group includes David Zachry, president of Zachry Corp., which operates Zachry Construction and Zachry Hospitality; three local executives from the NRP Group, a housing developer; Gary Joeris, who runs Joeris General Contractors; VersaTerra Development CEO Paul Basaldua; Mosaic Land Development president Blake Yantis; real estate investor Charles Leddy; and apartment developer Matthew Starr.
The local political action committee for the American Council of Engineering Companies and the San Antonio Apartment Association PAC each gave more than $2,500.
One week before the primary, Nirenberg also received $5,000 from Joseph Shields, the grandson of Charline and Red McCombs and now the executive vice president of McCombs Enterprises.
County Commissioner Justin Rodriguez, who represents the West Side, gave Nirenberg $2,500 in April. The county judge presides over the five-member Commissioners Court, which adopts the county budget and approves major county contracts and projects.
Former CPS Energy CEO Rudy Garza also donated $1,000 to Nirenberg in April, two months before he announced his departure from the city-owned utility to run the Lower Colorado River Authority.
Still, Nirenberg's fundraising in the months since the primary pales in comparison to what he raised when he was running against Sakai. He raised more than $500,000 in the run-up to the primary, which he won with 62% of the vote.
Nirenberg's next opponent has far less cash than Sakai, who reported still having $110,000 in his campaign account as of June 30 after losing the primary. Von Dohlen raised $15,600 in cash during the first six months of the year in mostly small-dollar donations.
His father, former seven-term state Rep. Tim Von Dohlen, gave $5,000. Michael Knuffke, Von Dohlen's business partner and the president of the San Antonio Family Association, a nonprofit Von Dohlen founded that advocates for socially conservative positions, gave $2,000.
Bexar County voters haven't elected a Republican county judge since Cindi Taylor Krier in 1998. The same county judge - Democrat Nelson Wolff - held the seat from 2001 until 2022.
Four years ago, then-County Commissioner Trish DeBerry was seen as a formidable Republican opponent to Sakai, then a district court judge. The race was not close: Sakai won by 95,000 votes.
Election day is Nov. 3. Droves of voters are expected to turn out for major midterm races, namely the U.S. Senate election between Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton.
Subscribe
There’s more to San Antonio with the Express-News. Subscribe today for just 25¢.Read this story on expressnews.com
