It seems as if legal professionals in Texas have become quite alarmed by the prospect that Rick Green could end up on the state's Supreme Court and have been dumping money into his opponent's campaign, at least judging by the latest campaign finance reports:
In a race focused on who is better equipped to sit on the Texas Supreme Court, the state's legal profession has picked its candidate for the GOP runoff election: Debra Lehrmann, a Fort Worth state District Court judge.
In addition to getting solid backing by lawyers and law firms, Lehrmann raced to a huge fundraising advantage with support from an array of business and professional groups, collecting $278,000 in the five weeks since the March 2 primary, campaign finance reports show.
Opponent Rick Green, a former legislator and conservative activist from Dripping Springs, raised $74,774 in the same period, largely from smaller donations — many in the $5 to $50 range — solicited over the Internet.
Early voting runs through Friday. The runoff election is Tuesday.
54% of Lehrmann's donations have come from lawyers versus less than one percent of Green's, while nearly a quarter of Green's donations have come from out of state, which he attributes to his time traveling the country for Wallbuilders.
And since Green has been badly out-raised by his opponent, he's been spending his limited resources in places that provide the best chance of reaching his target audience:
Since the primary, Green has spent $5,000 on phone bank and computer services through the Heritage Alliance, a Texas organization that supports limited taxation and a Judeo-Christian heritage in government. Another $2,500 went for advertising on the "What's Up" show on KKHT , a Houston Christian radio station.
