Raleigh mayoral candidates rake in campaign cash. How it stacks up.
What’s it going to take to be Raleigh’s next mayor?
Or, how much might it cost?
Three of the six mayoral candidates say they have already raised more than $100,000, with Caroline Sullivan pulling in $215,000 from more than 400 donors.
Charles Francis is reporting $150,000 in donations from over 275 donors, with Mary-Ann Baldwin at nearly $125,000 from more than 220 donors.
Two of the remaining three candidate are far behind, with the third, Justin Sutton, saying his numbers would be available in campaign finance reports due Friday.
Zainab Baloch has raised about $15,000, she said.
But that’s more than George Knott, who said he’s not taking any money.
Candidates have until Friday, July 26, to turn in their mid-year reports, and that’s when we’ll get a better idea of who is backing whom.
And while the numbers so far may seem eye-popping, they’re really not.
In 2017 during his first bout against incumbent Nancy McFarlane, Francis raised raised nearly $300,000. McFarlane, who is not seeking re-election this year, raised nearly $250,000 two years ago. And that’s not counting what the two loaned their campaigns.
From 1993 to 1999, then Raleigh Mayor Tom Fetzer raised more than $500,000 (though some of that was for a gubernatorial run that never panned out). The four candidates who wanted to fill Fetzer’s seat spent more than $1 million in their campaigns, according to The News & Observer.
And when former Mayor Charles Meeker tried to unseat incumbent Paul Coble in 2001, the pair spent nearly $1 million.
With six candidates in the Oct. 8 election, it’s likely none will get more than 50% of the vote and the top two vote getters would go on to a runoff election Nov. 5.
After Friday, the next campaign finance reports are due in September.
The missing candidates
Filing for Raleigh’s municipal election ended last week with two names noticeably missing.
Robbie Rikard and Olen Watson III both planned to run for one of the two at-large districts seats but, both, dropped out at the last minute. And for similar reasons.
They both want incumbent Russ Stephenson out of his seat and said having too many challengers in the race only helps him.
“My hope is that by not running, the chances that a remaining candidate can consolidate enough votes to beat Russ will be greater, and I will be freed up to help some candidates in other races unseat other incumbents,” Rikard said in a Facebook post. “You will still find me very involved in this election and I plan to find ways to stay involved in shaping Council’s policies after the election (hopefully with a new set of councilors).”
If Watson and Rikard had filed, there would have been eight people competing for two spots. Their decisions leave six — Stephenson, incumbent Nicole Stewart, James Bledsoe, Jonathan Melton, Portia Wilson Rochelle and Carlie Allison Spencer — in the race now.
Have an election tip? Email Anna Johnson at ajohnson@newsobsesrver.com or DM her on Twitter @anna_m_johnson.
Anna Johnson: 919-829-4807, @anna_m_johnson
This story was originally published July 25, 2019 at 10:50 AM with the headline "Raleigh mayoral candidates rake in campaign cash. How it stacks up.."
