Follow the Money: The Wasco County District Attorney’s Race by the Books
By Cole Goodwin
The Dalles, Ore., May 22, 2024 – Voter PSA: Did you know you can look up candidates' campaign spending on the Oregon Secretary of State's website? Well, you can.
Voters can utilize campaign spending tools to learn a lot about a candidate by following the money and this year’s Wasco County District Attorney race is no exception.
CCCNews took a look at the financial strategies of the two DA candidates, Travis Marston and Kara Davis, to teach voters how campaign funding and spending can reveal hidden political ties and priority contrasts in campaigns.
Travis Marston's campaign was primarily funded through the Save Wasco County PAC, which has supplied him with $19,000 thus far. Notably, this PAC is predominantly funded by the Wasco County Republican Party, with a $10,000 donation last month. This funding raises questions about the stated non-partisanship of Marston’s campaign, given the PAC's substantial financial ties to the Republican Party.
Moreover, Marston’s campaign expenditures include a notable $12,741 in payments to JES Company LLC, for printing of brochures, literature and social media advertising. JES Company, which has no online presence, is owned by John Swanson, a prominent right-wing conservative figure and former chief of staff for Senator Chuck Thompson. Swanson’s past roles include a board membership at the Oregon Right to Life PAC and orchestration of multiple Republican walkouts in the Oregon State Senate. Marston’s campaign also spent a total of $4,638 on radio advertising with KODL, Bicoastal Media and Gorge Country Media Inc.
Screenshot of the Oregon Secretary of State’s website shows’s Marston’s campaign funding and spending.
In contrast, Kara Davis's campaign has demonstrated a different approach with fewer large donations and numerous small-scale contributions. Davis’s campaign records reveal a mix of small individual contributions and modest expenditures to local businesses for campaign materials and services. Notable payments include $2,130 to Morel Ink and $140 to Optimist Printers for printing, $399 to CCCNews.com for advertising, $2,276 with Meadow Outdoor Advertising and $5,370 to Oxalis Group for campaign consulting.
Like Martson, Davis has received some contributions from a partisan party, however, it is notably a smaller contribution of a $500 in-kind contribution from the Wasco County Democratic Central Committee, illustrating some party support.
Davis' campaign was also supported by $5,250 in donations from current Wasco County District Attorney Matthew Ellis, who has publically endorsed Davis for DA. A review of Davis's funding sources reveals a far more diversified base, with numerous small donations from fellow attorneys, locals and out-of-state supporters, potentially reflecting a broader and less centralized’ support base, contrasting sharply with Marston's singularly large Republican PAC contributions.
Screenshot from the Oregon Secretary of States website shows’s Davis’ campaign funding and spending.
Davis also spent funds on community engagement activities, such as a $450 payment to The Riverside for event hosting, aligning with her campaign’s focus on direct voter contact and community involvement.
According to the spending logs, Marstons’s campaign has spent about $17,409 of the $21,421.40 in contributions they’ve received (as of election day) and Davis's campaign had raised $17,549 and spent $15,279.
Leftover finances can not be used for personal expenses according to law. They can be used to handle outstanding campaign expenses, transferred into reelection campaign funds, or donated to other campaigns, candidates, or charities.
To look up an Oregon candidate’s campaign spending, click here.
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