On the Records: Obama Releases First-Quarter Bundler List
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Volunteer fundraisers for President Barack Obama’s re-election effort in Texas have raised at least $5.7 million, the latest records show, up from $3.4 million in the fourth quarter of last year. The number of Texas volunteer fundraisers — also known as “bundlers” — collecting at least $50,000 for the campaign rose to 34 from 21 at the end of last year.
The Obama campaign’s fundraising fortunes in Houston have seen a dramatic uptick, from zero major Houston bundlers until the fourth quarter of last year to adding nine in just the first quarter of this year. Thirteen of the 34 major fundraisers now come from Houston. Two of the new Houston bundlers are state Rep. Garnet Coleman and state Sen. Rodney Ellis. All but five of Obama’s major fundraisers are from Austin, Dallas or Houston.
Six of the new fundraisers are lawyers. Among them is Cary Patterson, a Texarkana-based lawyer who won his clients a $45.5 million settlement from Chevron in a 2009 natural gas case. Patterson has raised more than $500,000 for the Obama campaign — the most of any new bundler.
Five fundraisers jumped into higher collection brackets, including Naomi Aberly of HBK Capital Management, who has now raised more than $500,000, and Carrin Patman, a Houston-based trial lawyer who entered the $200,000-$500,000 range.
The table below lists all Texas fundraisers in the master list who have raised at least $50,000. As in the past, we compared the list to the 2008 election bundler data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics, and we highlighted with italics the names of those who were bundlers during Obama's 2008 campaign.
| Name | Affiliation | City | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aberly, Naomi | HBK Capital Management | Dallas | $500,000+ |
| Muñoz, Henry | Kell Muñoz Architects, Inc. | San Antonio | $500,000+ |
| Patterson, Cary | Nix, Patterson & Roach | Texarkana | $500,000+ |
| Rudy, Kirk | Endeavor Real Estate | Austin | $500,000+ |
| Sepulveda, Eugene | Entrepreneurs Foundation of Central Texas | Austin | $500,000+ |
| Boone, Aimee | Texas Democratic Trust | Dallas | $200,000-$500,000 |
| Chase, Tony | Greater Houston Partnership | Houston | $200,000-$500,000 |
| Garcia, Roland | Greenberg Taurig | Houston | $200,000-$500,000 |
| Liemandt, Andra | Austin | $200,000-$500,000 | |
| Patman, Carrin | Bracewell & Giuliani | Houston | $200,000-$500,000 |
| Reeves, Beverly | Reeves & Brightwell | Austin | $200,000-$500,000 |
| Stanley, Marc | National Jewish Democratic Council | Dallas | $200,000-$500,000 |
| Wesner, Alexa | Blue Texas | Austin | $200,000-$500,000 |
| Cavnar, Gracie | Recipe for Success Foundation | Houston | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Cohen, Phyllis | Attorney | Houston | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Freeman, Jason | National Association of Minority Contractors | Houston | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Gail, David | Attorney | Dallas | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Gorman, John | Tejas Securities Group | Austin | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Husain, Nomi | Young & Husain | Houston | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Jacobson, Rochelle | Anti-Defamation League | Houston | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Kraus, Peter | Waters & Kraus | Dallas | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Li, Michael | Attorney | Dallas | $100,000-$200,000 |
| McGarr, Cappy | McGarr Capital | Dallas | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Susman, Ellen | Journalist | Houston | $100,000-$200,000 |
| Brender, Art | Law Offices of Art Brender | Fort Worth | $50,000-$100,000 |
| Coleman, Garnet | State Representative | Houston | $50,000-$100,000 |
| Ellis, Matt | Austin | $50,000-$100,000 | |
| Ellis, Rodney | State Senator | Houston | $50,000-$100,000 |
| Few, Arvia | Houston | $50,000-$100,000 | |
| Meredith, Lynn | MFI Foundation | Austin | $50,000-$100,000 |
| Morrison, Richard Dick | Richard Morrison Law Office | Kemah | $50,000-$100,000 |
| Payne, James | Provost Umphrey Law Firm | Beaumont | $50,000-$100,000 |
| Sorrell, Michael | Paul Quinn College | Dallas | $50,000-$100,000 |
| White, Bill | Houston | $50,000-$100,000 |
Several of the Obama bundlers listed here are donors to The Texas Tribune. Naomi Aberly, Cappy McGarr, Lynn Meredith, Kirk Rudy and Alexa Wesner are major donors. Aimee Boone, Matt Ellis, Carrin Patman, Eugene Sepulveda, Michael Sorrell, Ellen Susman and Bill White are donors. Reeves & Brightwell and Waters & Kraus, LLP are corporate sponsors.
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