Commission candidates file early contribution reports

Just more than a month has passed since the deadline to file for the March 10 City Commission election, but already, donations and spending in the two district races have ramped up.

The candidates’ January financial reports, filed this week, document that monetary movement through the end of the month. In both the District 2 and District 3 fields, one candidate has emerged as the big spender, dwarfing the total expenditures of their opponents.

District 2

In District 2, that candidate is incumbent Eileen Walsh Normile. Having raked in $5,900 in cash donations in January, Normile accumulated an overall total of $11,600 in monetary contributions through Jan. 31. The January funds came largely from a pool of nearly 40 individual donors, who mostly made donations between $100 and the $200 maximum contribution.

Through January, Normile had spent $8,077.26 — nearly four times the combined expenditures of the other two candidates in the District 2 race. Almost all of that money has gone toward signs and the distribution of other campaign materials.

Although her spending is lagging far behind Normile, fellow District 2 candidate Liz Alpert has generated $7,125 in monetary contributions. Alpert’s support has come from an even deeper pool of nearly 70 individual donors, many of whom made smaller contributions between $50 and $100. Alpert has spent just $1,391.69 of those funds, most of which was dedicated to yard signs.

David Morgan has raised $2,105 through January. One notable donation came from the last candidate to win an election in District 2, Paul Caragiulo, who made the $200 maximum individual contribution. The majority of Morgan’s $727.37 in expenditures has also gone toward yard signs.

District 3

In District 3, the monetary heavyweight is a challenger — Matt Wooddall, who bolstered his $850 in January individual donations with a $4,103.53 loan to himself.

Wooddall has spent $8,371.59 of the $9,153.53 he has generated through Jan. 31, a figure that represents 78% of the overall expenditures in the District 3 race. Wooddall’s leading expenditure was $3,700 to Keen Campaigning, a Palmetto communications consulting firm.

Incumbent Stan Zimmerman has received $3,716 in contributions, and has spent $1,314.08 through January. Shelli Freeland Eddie has received $2,495, and has spent $989.04. Both candidates have dedicated a majority of their expenditures to campaign supplies.

The full financial reports can be found on the city website.

Contact David Conway at [email protected].