Four San Antonio mayoral candidates accuse others of taking ‘dark money’

Four San Antonio mayoral candidates called a press conference Thursday afternoon to warn the public about so-called “dark money” flowing into race and blast the media for not covering the issue.

“Dark money” typically refers to political spending to influence voters in which the identity of the donor isn’t disclosed and the source of the money is unknown.

During their press conference in front of City Hall, the candidates didn’t accuse any others vying to become San Antonio’s next mayor of any wrongdoing, including ethics violations or law-breaking. Instead, they attempted to draw attention to money flowing into the contest from outside the city.

“I haven’t gotten any money from outside San Antonio,” District 9 Councilman and mayoral candidate John Courage said at the press conference in front of City Hall. “But, certainly, people in Boerne and Comal [county] have very special interests in San Antonio because they have friends and relatives there.”

The candidates assembled for the presser also included former Wall Street bond trader Mauricio Sanchez, childcare-service provider Jade McCullough and former District 10 councilman Clayton Perry. Courage was polling at 7.1% in UTSA’s Center for Public Opinion Research latest survey, and none of the other three polled above 3%.

The group took aim at three of the race’s top three contenders: former Undersecretary of the U.S. Air Force Gina Ortiz Jones, former Texas Secretary of State Rolando Pablos and tech entrepreneur and political novice Beto Altamirano. However, none mentioned District 8 Councilman and mayoral candidate Manny Pelaez — the only candidate whose accepted contributions from unnamed donors, according to a data dive by the Express-News.

Just the same, atypically large amounts of money from political action committees, or PACs, based outside Bexar County has flowed into the current mayoral race.

Washington, D.C.-based Fields of Change, which backs Democratic candidates across the board, spent nearly $106,000 running digital ads and mailers for Jones, the Express-News reports.

Meanwhile, the Gov. Greg Abbott-aligned Texas Economic Fund has poured $212,600 into mailers, billboards, radio and television ads for Pablos, according to the daily.

“To the public, its all dark money,” Courage said. “I don’t see any list being published … . So, to the general public, it’s unknown. It’s uncertain.”

For reference, the Express-New, the San Antonio Report and the Current have reported on PAC spending in the race. What’s more, all PAC donors are public records, meaning anyone can view whose money is going to what campaign in campaign filings.

The only exception is political nonprofits, which can donate money to campaigns without having to publicly disclose the identify of their donors.

The only candidate to accept money of unknown origin from a political nonprofit is District 8 Councilman and mayoral candidate Manny Pelaez. The San Antonio for Everyone nonprofit, formed this election, spent nearly $136,400 to run ads on KSAT-TV and streaming services, including Netflix and Hulu, in support of Pelaez, according to the Express-News.

When an Express-News reporter asked Courage and the others if they were protecting Pelaez by intentionally leaving his name out of the mix, the candidates offered a variety of responses.

Sanchez backtracked, insisting that he only “spoke for himself” and “didn’t mention any names.”

Courage fired back, arguing that the donations of unnamed people Pelaez has accepted through the nonprofit don’t qualify as dark money, even if they’re anonymous.

“That nonprofit is really a local organization. There’s more local money than money from Austin, Washington and California,” Courage said without providing evidence.

Voters will need to wait until Saturday, May 3, to see if the candidates’ Hail Mary press conference had any bearing on the contest. Polls will be open 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Election Day, and a full list of polling stations is available on the Bexar County Elections website.

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This article appears in Apr 30 – May 13, 2025.