FEC Filings Show TX-23 Democrat Katy Padilla Stout’s Campaign Spent $4,338 on Cookies, Beer, Wine and Mexican Catering
The campaign of Katy Padilla Stout, the Democratic nominee in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, reported spending $4,338.14 on cookies, beer, wine and catering from a Mexican restaurant in March and April, according to Federal Election Commission records reviewed by The Digital Free Press.
The spending drew new attention this week in a New York Post report, which cited figures first reported in August by RedState. TDFP pulled the entries directly from the FEC’s data for her committee, Katy Padilla Stout for Congress. The numbers match the Post’s figures to the cent.
WHAT THE FEC FILINGS SHOW
According to the campaign’s amended April quarterly report, filed with the FEC on July 19, the campaign paid $675 on March 30 for “COOKIES FOR EVENT.” The payee is listed as an individual in San Antonio.
The campaign’s amended July quarterly report, filed July 20, lists two payments to Total Wine in San Antonio described as “BEER AND WINE”: $1,089.08 on April 21 and $200.14 on April 22, for a total of $1,289.22.
The same report lists two payments described as “CATERING” to Las Guitarras Cocina Mexicana in Boerne, Texas: $2,027.52 on April 27 and $346.40 on April 28, for a total of $2,373.92.
The filings show what the campaign reported and the stated purpose of each payment. They do not show who attended the events or how many people were served.
Stout has defended the purchases. “The disbursements were for campaign and fundraising events which were attended by our supporters,” Stout said in a statement to Fox News Digital that was carried in the Post’s report. “Sugar cookies, particularly Texas-shaped ones, hold a special place in Texan culture. We bought ours at a local bakery because we believe in supporting small businesses.”
THE PADILLA STOUT CAMPAIGN SPENDING IN CONTEXT
Paying for food and drinks at campaign and fundraising events is legal. The FEC bars candidates from using campaign money for personal use, which the agency defines as an expense that “would exist irrespective of the candidate’s campaign.” Nothing in the filings shows that any of these purchases were for personal use, and no regulator has said otherwise.
For scale, the campaign reported total spending of about $56,000 in its April quarterly report and about $231,000 in its July quarterly report, according to the FEC. The five entries make up roughly 1.5% of that combined total.
The campaign’s newest report, filed Oct. 15 and covering July through September, lists about $235,000 in total spending. In that report, TDFP counted 15 more payments labeled “catering” or “meals,” totaling about $5,300, at places including restaurants, a grocery store and a food delivery app. Food for events and campaign travel is a routine expense for congressional campaigns, and the report does not say more about each purchase than those labels.
Republican nominee Brandon Herrera, a firearms manufacturer and online personality, has made the cookie payment a line of attack. His campaign runs an opposition website that features the $675 entry under a section titled “Cookie gate,” according to the Post. Herrera’s campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment, the Post’s report said.
The renewed attention follows a heated televised debate in San Antonio this week over Herrera’s online videos, after which Stout apologized for part of a remark she made about him, according to the Post.
A BORDER SEAT, AND A DIFFERENT TEXAS RACE
Stout, a former teacher and child welfare attorney, and Herrera are running to replace former Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales, who resigned earlier this year, the Post reported. The 23rd District stretches from the San Antonio area toward El Paso and covers hundreds of miles of the U.S.-Mexico border. Early voting in Texas begins Oct. 19, and Election Day is Nov. 3.
The 23rd District is a different seat from Texas’ 35th District, where TDFP reported this week on Democratic nominee Johnny Garcia’s deputy suspension records.
Sources: Federal Election Commission filings for Katy Padilla Stout for Congress (C00926121): amended April quarterly report (filed July 19, 2026), amended July quarterly report (filed July 20, 2026) and October quarterly report (filed Oct. 15, 2026); FEC guidance on personal use of campaign funds; New York Post (Oct. 17, 2026), including Stout’s statement to Fox News Digital. Cover and in-post backgrounds: Texas State Capitol file photos via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0 and CC0).
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