Kelly, a Republican, was found to have received campaign contributions from four people totaling $25,000. This exceeded the $2,700 limit that an individual can give during an election cycle. * Received $50,000 in loans — $49,900 more than allowed by law. The loan was guaranteed by someone other than the candidate and thus were considered contributions. According to the FEC audit the issues were solved during the investigation. The loan was repaid and the contributions returned. A staff finding that the $50,000 loan was a prohibited contribution was rejected by the commission. This is a much more serious charge. These issues were raised during a field audit in 2015, when Kelly was one 13 candidate to replace Alan Nunnelee (a Tupelo Republican who had died earlier that year). Kelly will face Randy Mack Wadkins (a chemistry professor at the University of Mississippi) in this election cycle. Tracella Lou O’Hara, a Reform Party candidate, is also facing Kelly. The 1st district includes DeSoto and Lee county’s population centers as well as the University of Mississippi in Lafayette County.