Battle has campaign fund lead
Battle has campaign fund lead
Thursday, July 17, 2008
By JOHN PECK
Times Staff Writer john.peck@htimes.com
Mayoral candidateis at $140,953,Spencer $128,025
Businessman and former City Councilman Tommy Battle, relying heavily on donations through Political Action Committees, has opened a money lead over Mayor Loretta Spencer in the 2008 mayoral campaign.
Campaign disclosure reports filed this week show Battle received $140,953 in campaign contributions compared to Spencer’s $128,025. The disclosures come just six weeks before the Aug. 26 municipal elections, which is typically the time frame when campaigns ramp up their fundraising efforts. Spencer accepted $2,500 from PACs since the fundraising window opened last August.
Nearly $57,000 to the Battle campaign came from PACs. Battle said Wednesday many of those sources wanted the anonymity of those PACS to avoid retribution from the mayor’s administration.
Spencer said, though, "I don’t hold grudges. If I held grudges, I would never have appointed Mary Jane Caylor to head the (2005) Bicentennial planning."
Caylor ran unsuccessfully against Spencer in 2004.
Spencer got a head start over Battle in the campaign cash race, raising $104,350 in November and December. Battle didn’t announce his candidacy until several months ago. Spencer raised $23,675 this year.
Other mayoral hopefuls, local defense worker Mike Polemeni and retired aerospace worker and restaurant employee Jackie Reed, did not file campaign disclosure reports because they did not meet the filing threshold of spending or raising at least $1,000 in the campaign.
Battle’s campaign coffers include a $20,000 contribution from himself and $25,000 in a direct contribution from a partnership. His donor list included $56,700 from PACs. Several of those PACs are registered to the media marketing firm of David Driscoll, who is handling his campaign.
Battle financial backers reflected in the disclosed reports include former Mayor Steve Hettinger, City Councilwoman Sandra Moon, doctors, developers, businesspeople, young professionals and other individuals. Battle waged a spirited but unsuccessful runoff campaign against Hettinger in 1988 when Hettinger unseated longtime Mayor Joe Davis.
On the campaign disclosure reports, Battle lists $4,725 worth of donations from local businesses and more than $5,700 in nonitemized donations in increments of less than $50. Spencer reported $16,000 from businesses and $2,500 from PACs led by Intergraph and Millennium Engineering. Spencer also accepted PAC donations in her last campaign.
Battle said most of the PACs used in his campaign were funded by limited liability partnerships he is involved in with local developer Randy Schrimsher, Sage Lyons and Calame Sammons. Records furnished by his campaign confirm $37,000 from two of those partnerships, Westferry Properties and Huntsville Warehouse. Battle said some individuals gave to the PACs or in small, nonitemized amounts to avoid being identified.
"Their ultimate goal is to stay out of the line of fire," he said. "I hate it we’re in that kind of situation that people have to do that. They want to support the campaign but don’t want their business to be killed or face the wrath" of the mayor’s administration.
Other contributors to those PACs include Putman Construction and Realty, David S. Butler, KWP Investments, City Investment Company. A complete list of donors to PACs participating in Battle’s campaign was not available because of a filing mix-up.
Driscoll said he planned to correct that in an amended report.
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