A committee under which Republican gubernatorial candidate Jan Morgan of Hot Springs explored running for governor had more than $10,000 in the bank at the end of November, according to a report released Wednesday by the secretary of state's office.
The Jan Morgan for Governor Exploratory Committee raised $8,424 and spent $8,906.06 in November, according to the report filed Dec. 30 with the secretary of state's office. The committee started November with a treasury of $11,259.80 and ended it with $10,777.74, the report said. In a report filed at the end of November, the committee reported it had $12,208.40 in the bank at the end of October.
The report for November wasn't posted on the secretary of state's website until Wednesday, said Danielle Fusco, a spokesman for the secretary of state's office.
"It was an oversight as it came in at the same time of many other documents into our elections division at a very busy time. However, it was correctly file stamped for December 30, 2017 and was received by the deadline," Fusco said in an email. State law requires exploratory committee reports to be filed within 30 days after the end of a month.
Jan Morgan
Jan Morgan, a Hot Springs Republican, announced on Dec. 31 that she would challenge Gov. Asa Hutchinson in the GOP primary in May.
Morgan owns the Gun Cave shooting range in Hot Springs. In 2014, she drew national media attention by declaring her gun range a "Muslim Free Zone," saying that she was concerned about the safety of other customers if Muslims patronized her business.
In her campaign's news release, Morgan said she traveled the state for six months talking to Arkansans before making her decision to run.
Morgan, who formed a committee in mid-October to explore running for governor, announced Dec. 31 that she plans to challenge Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson in the May 22 primary election. Morgan could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Hutchinson of Rogers reported Tuesday that he had $2.02 million in his campaign treasury at the end of December. He announced his bid for re-election in May after holding a fundraiser at the Capital Hotel in January 2017 prior to the regular legislative session.
Meanwhile, secretary of state candidate John Thurston had more than $33,000 in his campaign treasury at the end of December, Thurston reported.
Thurston, an East End Republican who is the state's land commissioner, reported raising $23,313.74 and spending $5,537.82 last quarter, according to his report filed Tuesday night. He started the quarter with a campaign treasury of $15,380.58 and ended it with $33,156.50.
In contrast, the other Republican candidate for secretary of state, Trevor Drown of Dover, reported more than $48,000 in his campaign treasury at the end of December.
Drown reported raising $26,250 in contributions and spending $1,364.09 last quarter. He started the quarter with $23,331.04 in the bank and ended it with $48,216.95.
Metro on 01/18/2018