As you probably know, the runoff election for the 13th Congressional District was moved to July 14 due to COVID-19. Texas Panhandle Native and local Josh Winegarner will face Ronny Jackson in the election. Amarillo Matters has endorsed Josh Winegarner, the only local candidate in the race. He was born and raised in Spearman and lives just outside of Canyon with his wife, Jenni, and their two children. Josh has been an active member of our community and has worked hard on agricultural issues through his role at the Texas Cattle Feeders Association for years. He has a proven track record of getting things done and knows our area.
As we start to see outside forces and well-funded PACs ramp up campaigns, we felt it was essential to provide a little background and context to these people and groups.
You might remember the name Chris Ekstrom. He's a multi-millionaire from Dallas who spent more than $1 million trying to buy our congressional seat in the primary election. He was one of fourteen candidates that Winegarner beat by steep margins in March. In that election, Ekstrom received an endorsement from a nation-wide organization named Club for Growth. Club for Growth is much like Texas-based Empower Texans but on a national level. They raise and spend a lot of money on political races, mostly pitting republicans against other republican candidates. According to the Federal Ethics Commission, Tim Dunn, who founded Empower Texans, gave the group $250,000, making him the largest financial donor from Texas in the most recent reporting cycle. It's our belief that groups like Empower Texans, and Club for Growth have no real interest in our area and are only looking to elect someone they believe would put their agenda ahead of the needs of the district. Club for Growth, who had endorsed Ekstrom in the primary, recently announced their support for Jackson in the runoff. This means they've endorsed two candidates, neither of whom lived in our area before last year. Experts believe they could spend as much as $1 million in this race.
Amarillo Matters has always maintained that our elections should be decided locally, and we hope you'll join us in supporting Josh Winegarner. We feel that Winegarner will put the needs of our area first and work hard for the entire district. Learn more about Winegarner and make a donation to his campaign by clicking here.
