Six candidates running for seats on The Woodlands Township board of directors spent nearly $55,000 on their campaigns in the months leading up to the Nov. 3 general election, according to campaign finance reports filed with the Texas Ethics Commission eight and 30 days prior to Election Day.

Jimmie Dotson and Dan Hannon, two candidates running against incumbent directors, reported the highest contribution and spending totals between their two finance reports filed in October.

Dotson, who is seeking to unseat Jason J. Nelson in the Position 2 director race, reported the most contributions of any candidate with $19,109.14 raised from Sept. 9-Oct. 24 while Nelson reported raising a total of $2,660 between July 1-Oct. 24. Over those same periods, Dotson reported spending a total of $15,420.23 on his campaign, and Nelson reported spending $2,929.34.

Dotson reported receiving donations of between $9.32 and $1,000 from Texas contributors in The Woodlands, Shenandoah, Willis, Montgomery, Spring, Conroe, Magnolia, Tomball, Sugar Land, Houston, Plano, Pflugerville, Round Rock and Austin as well as out-of-state contributors in Tennessee, New York, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Ohio and Georgia. The Texas Association of Realtors and TownshipFuture political group were among $1,000 donors to Dotson's campaign.

Nelson's contributions ranged from $10 to $500 and came from individuals in The Woodlands, Spring, Cypress, Tomball and Hockley as well as Wisconsin.

Hannon, who is running against incumbent Position 4 director Bruce Rieser, received less in contributions than Dotson but outspent all other board candidates from summer into fall.


From Aug. 17-Oct. 24, Hannon raised $13,336 and spent a total of $18,513.90 on his campaign. Rieser reported $1,850 in contributions from July 16-Oct. 26 and spent $4,725 over the same period.

Hannon received between $1 and $1,000 from local contributors in The Woodlands, Conroe, Magnolia, Montgomery, Shenandoah, Cypress and Spring as well as one in Oregon, and in-kind contributions of $218.99 and $500 for campaign signage and video, respectively. Political spending in support of Hannon by TownshipFuture was also reported.

Rieser received $1,000 from the Texas Real Estate PAC and a $100 contribution from an individual in The Woodlands as well as a personal loan of $750 to his campaign.

Incumbent chairman of the township board Gordy Bunch raised more than his opposition in the Position 1 director race, Jerry D. Smith Jr., in the months leading up to the election.


From Jan. 1, 2019-Oct. 25, 2020, Bunch reported receiving $2,000 in campaign contributions including two $1,000 contributions from the TRE PAC and a pair of The Woodlands residents. Bunch reported $12,567 in campaign spending over the same time, including $8,242.68 in personal funding.

In his Oct. 4 filing, Smith reported a total of $647.16 in spending during September and October this year financed through a personal loan of the same amount to his campaign. The Oct. 4 filing was the only report filed by Smith, according to records received from the township.

Editor's note: Campaign finance reports were not filed by candidates Tom Chumbley or Louis Granados, both of whom are candidates for Position 2.