Campaign funding: who’s backing the top 3 candidates in Citrus Heights

Latest campaign finance disclosures filed on Oct. 27 show three candidates far outpacing the rest in the race for two seats on the Citrus Heights city council.

Reporting more than $17,000 in contributions, Vice Mayor Jeff Slowey maintained a significant lead over the other seven candidates, but Planning Commissioner Rick Doyle and financial tech director Marcel Weiland also reported receiving more than $10,000 in contributions — more than double what each of the remaining five candidates reported receiving.

Although money doesn’t always dictate who wins and loses, a Sentinel review of local elections back to 2012 found winning council candidates have all raised over $10,000 — with some candidates spending over $20,000.

Who’s funding who?
During the latest reporting period from Sept. 25 through Oct. 22, Slowey picked up an additional $3,800 in contributions. He also reported two extra donations of $1,000 each from a real estate and labor political action committee (PAC) in the past week, bringing his contribution total up to $17,600.

The vice mayor’s top donor in most recent filings was the Citrus Heights Chamber of Commerce PAC, which donated $1,750. As previously reported on The Sentinel, Slowey’s overall top donor is Kings Management Group, which donated $3,000 and lists Stones Casino as its business address.

Coming in second for fundraising, Doyle reported a $5,400 boost in contributions during the latest reporting period, bringing his total up to $12,400. Doyle’s top donor listed was $2,000 from former Phoenix Casino president Jack Cunningham. He also received a $1,000 donation from Kings Casino Management Group.

Weiland reported another $3,600 in contributions, bringing his total up to $10,200. His top recent donor was also the Chamber PAC, which endorsed both Slowey and Weiland and gave each $1,750. Weiland’s top overall donor remained himself, with $5,800 of his own money donated to the campaign.

>See prior story from September: Slowey, Weiland dominate funding in latest Citrus Heights council election filings

Campaign expenditures listed by the trio were largely dominated by campaign mailing expenses to reach voters with direct mail. Slowey has spent the most so far, reporting $11,200 in expenditures — $7,100 of which was spent on several recent mailings.

Both Doyle and Weiland reported about $10,000 in campaign expenditures each, about a third of which was spent on literature and mailing-related costs in the latest reporting period.

>See where the candidates stand: Citrus Heights city council candidates on the issues, in their own words

Other candidates
The remaining five candidates have all reported spending and receiving less than $4,000 each throughout their campaigns. Tim Schaefer reported $3,100 in contributions, although $2,000 of that is in the form of loans to his campaign. Porsche Middleton reported receiving $3,900, and Bret Daniels $3,100.

Candidates Amor Taylor and Michael Nishimura were not required to file disclosure forms, as each filed a statement indicating they planned to spend and receive under $2,000 during the course of their campaigns.

Campaign disclosures are required by the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) for local candidates who raise or spend over $2,000. Two pre-election disclosure filings are required by the commission, with an additional requirement for candidates to file a separate form each time a donation of $1,000 or more is received.

The next FPPC reporting deadline is Jan. 31, 2017.

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See all candidates’ campaign finance disclosures: http://www.citrusheights.net/164/Candidate-Committee-Campaign-Statements