Campaign finance complaint filed in District 3 race

On Wednesday, Montopolis resident Stefan Wray filed a complaint with the Ethics Review Commission against District 3 candidate Susana Almanza. His complaint states that in Almanza’s July 15 campaign finance report, 23 individuals who contributed $250 or more to Almanza’s campaign were not identified by occupation or employer, which is a violation of city code. In a news release, Wray explained that he decided to keep a close watch on Almanza’s campaign after a copy of La Voz listed several campaign treasurers from other districts as Almanza supporters. “I decided to file this complaint not because I want to bring financial harm to Almanza and her campaign,” said Wray. “However, I think that Almanza’s lack of attention to detail should send a signal to voters about her capacity to run city government.” When asked for comment, Almanza told the Austin Monitor that the omissions were an error and had been corrected. She pointed out that errors will happen, especially in a field of candidates who may be new to politics, as evidenced by a handful of other candidates in City Council races who had made the same mistake. Almanza said her campaign had clearly been targeted by Wray.