With less than two weeks until Election Day, incumbent Mayor Amy Bublak and challenger Gil Esquer, a former city councilman, have each lined up several prominent endorsements.
Bublak, Turlock’s 23rd mayor and the first female to win the post, is being backed by the Turlock Associated Police Officers, Stanislaus and Tuolumne Central Labor Council AFL-CIO, Central Valley Taxpayers Association, Central Valley Association of Realtors, Central Valley Impact Republicans and the Republican Party of Stanislaus County.
Meanwhile, Esquer, 72, who served on the Turlock City Council from 2016 to 2020, has secured the endorsements of former mayors Gary Soiseth, Brad Bates and Curt Andre, in addition to former council members Forest White and Becky Arellano.
As the campaign heads into its final 10 days, the mayor holds a sizable fundraising advantage, according to the most recent financial statements for each candidate.
This calendar year, Bublak, 57, has raised more than $65,000, according to her filing for the period ending Oct. 22. Esquer, on the other hand, had raised a little less than $8,000 according to his campaign disclosure statement for the period ending Sept. 24.
By press time, Esquer had not filed his statement from the most recent period, due Oct. 27.
Bublak’s largest contributors are Denele Analytical, Inc., and Community Leaders of America.
Turlock-based Denele Analytical, an agricultural and environmental support lab, contributed $3,000 to Bublak’s war chest this period, while CLA, an out-of-state organization of Republican mayors, city council members and county leaders, contributed $2,500.
Last filing period, Bublak’s largest donors were R5 Group, Inc. ($4,900) of Modesto; Philip Rheinschild ($2,500) of Denair; Jose Fernandes ($2,500) of Oakdale; Joseph B. Vieria ($2,500) of San Jose; Matt Swanson and Maria Swanson ($2,450 apiece), both of Turlock; P&F Metals ($2,000) of Turlock; Prabjot Singh ($2,000) of Turlock; and Hall Equities Group ($2,000), a real estate investment/development organization based in Walnut Creek.
Among Esquer’s top contributors last period were Linda Julien, Phillip Blair, June Rogers, John K. Miles and John Ferrari, each of whom gave $1,000 to the campaign.
Total expenditures for Bublak are listed at just over $31,000, while Esquer’s totaled about $7,400 through the last filing period.
Bublak’s largest expenditures were $11,468 to Modesto’s Balvino Irizarry Political Campaign Services for campaign mailings, and $3,500 to Balvino Izzarry for campaign consulting. The mayor also paid Servant Marketing of Modesto $1,500 for polling and online marketing services.
Esquer’s largest expense was nearly $6,200 to Sign Depot for campaign signage.
