Sanders raises over $220,000 in quarter for ’26 primary
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Little Rock reported raising more than $220,000 in campaign contributions and spending more than $130,000 in the quarter that ended June 30 for the 2026 Republican primary, according to her latest campaign finance report.
In the last quarter, unsuccessful Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Jones of Little Rock reported raising more than $360 in contributions and spending more than $37,000, largely to help pay off campaign debts.
Jones said Thursday his campaign debt “is all paid off” from his bid for governor in 2022.
The campaign finance reports for Arkansas state candidates in the quarter that ended June 30 were due in the secretary of state’s office Monday.
In the last quarter, Sanders reported raising $221,377.21 and spending $133,230.27, leaving $2,830,216.24 in her campaign treasury as of June 30.
In contrast, the Republican governor, who was sworn in Jan. 10, reported raising $49,499.20 in contributions and spending $230,003.17 in the first quarter of this year that ended March 31.
Asked about her increased campaign contributions in the last quarter, Chris Caldwell, senior adviser to Sanders’ 2026 reelection campaign, said Thursday in a written statement that “As evident by the outpouring of support, Gov. Sanders has delivered on her campaign promise to implement bold conservative reforms like the LEARNS Act, public safety, and tax cuts, Arkansans have responded and her campaign’s strong fundraising numbers show that.”
The LEARNS Act is Sanders’ signature educational overhaul that, among other things, aims to boost starting teacher pay from $36,000 to $50,000 a year, increase other teachers’ salaries by $2,000 a year, and create the Arkansas Children’s Educational Freedom Account program, or school vouchers.
On June 30, Pulaski County Circuit Judge Herbert Wright ruled state lawmakers failed to follow the state’s
constitution when approving the LEARNS Act’s emergency clause, writing the law should not take effect until Aug. 1. Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin appealed the ruling to the state Supreme Court, where the first briefs are due by July 28. A group opposed to the LEARNS Act is trying to collect sufficient signatures of registered voters to place a proposed referendum on the law on the 2024 general election ballot.
Sanders is a former White House press secretary for former president Donald Trump, who is running for the Republican nomination for governor, and the daughter of former Gov. Mike Huckabee. She has not endorsed a candidate for president in 2024.
Her fundraising and spending levels in the 2022 election cycle were a record for a gubernatorial candidate in Arkansas. Her national profile as White House press secretary for Trump coupled with Trump’s endorsement and the continued national presence of Mike Huckabee, who ran for president in 2008 and 2016, helped bolster her fundraising, political experts and donors said last year.
According to Sanders’ latest campaign finance report, contributors of at least $2,000 to Sanders in the last quarter included:
■ $2,800, businessman Brian Moore of Springdale.
■ $2,000, businessman James Davison of Choudrant, La; Herschend Family Entertainment co-founder Jack Herschend of Branson, Mo; retiree Sheri Soulie of Caddo Gap; businessman David Wingard of Bismarck; retiree Mahlon Yoder of Menifee, Calif; attorney Alan Nussbaum of Little Rock; The Goodman Co. Chairman Murray Goodman of Palm Beach, Fla; businessman Steven Keith of Little Rock; retiree Joel Holmes of Little Rock; and businessman Frank Guinn of Paragould.
Sanders’ reported expenses last quarter included $38,015.05 for merchandise, $35,479.84 for direct mail, $19,573.67 for consultant fees, $13,942.65 for software and subscriptions, and $7,900 for polls.
On April 24, Sanders posted an ad on her Twitter page promoting new can koozies with the governor’s image above the words “Real Woman,” along with koozies with the respective images of fellow Republicans Alabama Gov. Kay Ivy, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem above the words “Real Woman.”
It came after a Bud Light ad featuring transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney.
As of Thursday afternoon, the featured products on Sanders’ campaign website include a “Real Woman Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders Beverage Cooler (set of 2),” and similar beverage coolers for Ivy, Reynolds and Noem.
In the quarter that ended June 30, Jones reported raising $368.92 and spending $37,807.28, leaving $4,967.50 in the campaign treasury as of June 30. As of Dec. 30, Jones reported $48,523.92 in campaign debt, after raising $2.087 million and spending $2.082 million in the 2022 general election. In the quarter that ended March 31, he reported paying off part of that campaign debt.
In the quarter that ended June 30, Jones reported expenses that included $12,088.02 to the Invictus Strategy Group of Arlington, Va., for debt repayment, $8,220.91 to Bumperactive of Austin, Texas, for debt repayment, and $12,019.99 to Capitol Compliance Associates of Washington, D.C. for debt repayment.
In February, Jones said he is forming a new political action committee, Vortex PAC, and its first goal will be flipping all four of Arkansas’ U.S. House of Representatives seats from Republican control.
In the quarter that ended June 30, Vortex PAC, reported campaign contributions of $55,504.20 to increase its total contributions received this year to $102,730.06 and disbursements of $47,931,12 to increase its total disbursements for this year to $58,035.94, leaving $44,694.12 in the bank as of June 30, according to the Federal Election Commission’s website.
Jones said Thursday he expects Vortex PAC to make candidates endorsements in the state’s four congressional races around the filing period for state and federal offices.
The filing period for candidates for federal and state offices in Arkansas will be at the State Capitol from noon Nov. 6 through noon Nov. 14. The primary election will be March 5, 2024, with the runoff election April 2, 2024, and the general election Nov. 5, 2024.