As mandated by law under the Ethics in Government Act, U.S. Senate candidates are required to submit personal financial disclosures to a public database which show certain income sources, assets, liabilities and other related information.
Mike Durant, Republican candidate for Alabama’s open U.S. Senate seat, on Monday filed his financial disclosure with the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics.
Outside of his military service, which is well-documented, Durant entered Alabama’s political arena last year as someone that was the lesser known of the other candidates in the race. Durant’s financial disclosure offers a glimpse into his business and personal financial dealings of which the public did not have knowledge prior to the filing.
The candidate reporting dates cover the timeframe of March 2020 to November 2021.
Durant, a first-time candidate for public office, is the founder and CEO of Huntsville-based defense contracting company Pinnacle Solutions, Inc. According to the candidate’s financial disclosure, he earned a salary of $687,865 from the company last year. Durant also serves as a director on the company’s governing board.
The report shows that between his and his spouse’s ownership of Pinnacle stock, Durant holds between $30-75 million worth of equity in the company.
Durant at the end of 2021 sold Pinnacle to his employees through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). Company leadership is currently in search of a new CEO as Durant seeks to transition out as chief executive later this year once a replacement is named.
In addition to his salary from Pinnacle, Durant earned fees from speaking engagements as well as royalties from his book deals. He holds royalty agreements with Writers House LLC for two books he had authored. Between the two sources of income, Durant earned more than $69,000.
The candidate also holds numerous assets in mutual funds, corporate securities stock, commercial real estate, and other investments. All assets and income sources indicate that Durant holds a significantly high net worth.
Given Durant’s personal financial health, which stems from his business and other generated income, the candidate could seemingly direct a substantial amount of resources to his senatorial campaign should he choose to do so.
Yellowhammer News inquired with the Durant campaign regarding the candidate’s willingness to invest personal resources into the race.
In response, campaign spokesman Scott Stone simply stated, “Night Stalkers Don’t Quit.” The statement is a nod to the motto of the U.S. Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment in which Durant served as a combat pilot.
Dylan Smith is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
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