How much money have Raleigh candidates raised, and where has it come from?
By Anna Johnson
RALEIGH
New campaign finance reports show the race for mayor won’t be the only expensive contest in Raleigh this year.
The newly released reports for the first-half of the year show Raleigh challengers are serious about kicking out incumbents on the Raleigh City Council. All eight seats on the board are up with only two incumbents — Mayor Nancy McFarlane and council member Dickie Thompson — not seeking re-election.
The News & Observer has noted the largest donors for each of the nearly 30 candidates, if candidates money was coming from outside Raleigh and North Carolina, and if they loaned themselves money for the campaign, among other details below
The mid-year reports are required by state law and cover all of the money raised and spent by candidates for the first half of the year. The reports were due July 26. Donors may give up to $5,400 and candidates don’t have to list a donor’s name, address and occupation if the donation is less than $50.
Donations under $50 are called “aggregated individual contributions.” The News & Observer included those donations in the average donation and number of donors totals, but they aren’t included in the percent and totals for donations from outside Raleigh and North Carolina.
An in-kind donation is a service or item donated to the campaign instead of money, like a restaurant owner not charging a rental fee for a campaign event.
The News & Observer will use a combination of interviews, events and public records to cover the 2019 Raleigh municipal election. All eight seats on the Raleigh City Council, including the mayor’s, are up. The Oct. 8 election will be the first in eight years in which voters will choose a new mayor. These campaign finance reports are public documents that The N&O reviewed and analyzed for this story. The next report is due Aug. 27, followed by the pre-election report on Sept. 23.
Raleigh Mayoral Candidates
Mary-Ann Baldwin, 62, vice president of marketing for Holt Brothers Inc. and executive director of the Holt Brothers Foundation, former City Council member.
Amount Raised: $123,807
Amount Spent: $6,306
Cash on hand at beginning: $3,615
Cash on hand at end: $122,213
Donors: 223 (or 189 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $591
Donations from outside North Carolina: $120 or 0.08%
Donations from outside Raleigh: $11,895 or 9.71%
Biggest donors: $5,100 from Daniel Alexander Lovenheim, owner of Oak City Group; $5,100 from Matthew Kenner, restaurant owner; $5,000 from Abdessamad Hachby, owner of Mulino; $5,000 from Niall Hanley, restaurant owner; $5,000 from Patricia Healy, of Hyde Street Holdings
Notable spending: None
Zainab Baloch, 28, numbers operations specialist at Even and political activist.
Amount Raised: $13,016
Amount Spent: $10,687
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $2,328
Donors: 38 (or 13 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $342
Donations from outside North Carolina: $580 or 4.7%
Donations from outside Raleigh: $7,443 or 60.7%
Biggest donors: $5,298.04 from Phian Tran in-kind campaign consulting services; $4,200 from Steven Smith for in-kind design, branding and marketing services.
Notable spending: None
Charles Francis, 56, managing partner at Francis Law Firm and managing director of North State Bank, former City Council member.
Amount Raised: $159,887
Amount Spent: $62,160
Cash on hand at beginning: $2.919
Cash on hand at end: $100,645
Donors: 264 (or 233 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $560
Donations from outside North Carolina: $5,250 or 3.5%
Donations from outside Raleigh: $43,750 or 29.4%
Biggest donors: $5,400 from George Autry, an attorney; $5,200 each from Dean Debnam and Sesha Debnam, of Workplace Options; Gail Perry of Perry and Associates; $5,200 from Nathaniel McMillan, head coach of the Indiana Pacers.
Notable spending: $15,000 for a campaign administrator, $8,558 for a campaign manager and $11,250 for treasurer services.
Knott has submitted paperwork declaring he will not raise more than $1,000.
Caroline Sullivan, 53, senior adviser for the N.C. Business Committee for Education.
Amount Raised: $204,546
Amount Spent: $34,043
Cash on hand at beginning: $10,000
Cash on hand at end: $180,503
Donors: 401 (or 336 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $533
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $74,446 or 35.1%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $116,309 or 54.8%
Biggest donors: Caroline Sullivan loaned her campaign $35,606. Other large donations include $5,400 from Lattie Floyd Jr., a developer; $5,400 from Steve Decherney a board member of Health Decisions; $5,400 from Lois Schnider, executive administrator of The Schnider Group; $5,400 from Salomon Cohen, owner of Fairco Inc.; $5,400 from Terence McAuliffe, former Virginia governor.
Notable spending: $13,586 for website and campaign services; $4,736 for staffing.
Justin Sutton, 30, procurement attorney for the state of North Carolina and political novice.
Sutton’s full report was not available as of July 30.
Raleigh At-Large District Candidates (two seats)
James Bledsoe, 33. IT Technician for N.C. Department of Public Safety.
Bledsoe’s full report was not available as of July 30.
Jonathan Melton, 33, domestic law attorney.
Amount Raised: $55,806
Amount Spent: $24,332
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $31,473
Donors: 205 (or 115 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $271
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $1,640 or 3.1%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $5,280 or 10.1%
Biggest donors: $5,400 from John Cooper, general contractor with Southeastern; $5,400 from Stephanie Jenkins an attorney; $4971 from Angela Salamanca, which includes in-kind donations of food, space and alcohol.
Notable spending: $8,100 to Virginia Reed for campaign work;
Portia Rochelle, 66, retired state employee and member of the local clergy.
Rochelle’s full report was not available as of July 30.
Carlie Allison Spencer, 24, third-year law student at Campbell Law School.
A report was not available because Spencer did not submit paperwork to become a candidate until after the report deadline.
Russ Stephenson, 63, architect and urban design consultant, current City Council member.
Amount Raised: $50,290
Amount Spent: $11,182
Cash on hand at beginning:$2,108
Cash on hand at end: $41,217
Donors: 89 (or 74 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $565
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $0
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $1,850 or 3.7%
Biggest donors: $5,400 each from Dean and Sesha Debnam of Workplace Options; $5,400 from James Goodmon, CEO of Capitol Broadcasting; and $3,712 from Stephenson.
Notable spending: $4,410 for campaign services
Nicole Stewart, 37, development director for the N.C. Conservation Network, current City Council member.
Amount Raised: $66,295
Amount Spent: $17,740
Cash on hand at beginning: $5,357
Cash on hand at end: $53,912
Donors: 288 (or 160 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $229
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $500 or 0.8%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $4,965 or 8%
Biggest donors: $5,400 from James Goodmon, CEO of Capitol Broadcasting; $3,500 from Raleigh Mayor Nancy McFarlane; $3,199 worth of food and drinks from Perry Safran of Safran Law Office; $3,000 from G. Smedes York, chairman of York Properties.
Notable spending: $2,947 salary for Helen Hofelt; $1,200 to the North Carolina Democratic Party;
Raleigh District A Candidates
Joshua Bradley, 45, hotel accountant.
Bradley has submitted paperwork declaring he will not raise more than $1,000.
Patrick Buffkin, 36, staff attorney with the N.C. Utilities Commission
Amount Raised: $23,413
Amount Spent: $5,694
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $17,719
Donors: 126 (or 81 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $174
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $575 or 2.8%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $3,907 or 19%
Biggest donors: $3,000 from Jonathan Anderson, a lawyer.
Notable spending: $1,500 for campaign management fees
Sam Hershey, 42, Founder of Evim Solutions, LLC.
Amount Raised: $21,562
Amount Spent: $2,872
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $18,083
Donors: 21 (or 14 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $1,026
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $15,500 or 72.6%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $15,500 or 72.6%
Biggest donors: $5,400 from Birgit and Loren Hershey.
Notable spending: None.
Raleigh District B Candidates
David Cox, 61, computer scientist with ABB Company, current City Council member.
Amount Raised: $18,810
Amount Spent: $1,933
Cash on hand at beginning: $523
Cash on hand at end: $17,400
Donors: 56 (or 38 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $337
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $0
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $0
Biggest donors: $5,400 each from Dean and Sesha Debnam, of Workplace Options.
Notable spending: None
Brian Fitzsimmons, 36, project manager of AssuredPartners.
Amount Raised: $25,820
Amount Spent: $6,705
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $19,114
Donors: 127 (or 63 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $186
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $8,395 or 39.1%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $10,365 or 48.4%
Biggest donors: $2,750 from Eric Braun, retired attorney; $1,250 from Smedes York, chairman of York Properties; $1,250 from John Fitzsimmons, retired.
Notable spending: $2,000 for campaign management; $1,500 for compliance reporting
Raleigh District C Candidates
Shelia Alamin-Khashoggi, 56, owner of Beary Special Daycare.
Amount Raised: $3,209
Amount Spent: $2,268
Cash on hand at beginning: $99
Cash on hand at end: $1,039
Donors:5 (or 4 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $641
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $0
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $2,200 or 68%
Biggest donors: Shelia Alamin-Khashoggi donated $1,000 to her campaign. $1,500 from Andrea Bethea, retired state employee.
Notable spending: $1,500 for event planning
Corey Branch, 41, Associate Director of Technology for AT&T, current City Council member.
Amount Raised: $2,381
Amount Spent: $1,899
Cash on hand at beginning: $1,032
Cash on hand at end: $551
Donors: 9 (or 6 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $264
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $0
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $290 or 12%
Biggest donors: $1,456 from James Goodmon, CEO of Capitol Broadcasting.
Notable spending: None.
Wanda Hunter, 39, finance manager for Blueprint North Carolina.
A report was not available because Hunter did not submit paperwork to become a candidate until after the report deadline.
Ricky Scott, 58, teaching and learning consulting.
Amount Raised: $90
Amount Spent: $46
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $44
Donors: 2 (there were 0 aggregated individual contributions)
Average Donation: $45
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $0
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $0
Biggest donors: $50 from Lawrence Carter, retired.
Notable spending: None
Raleigh District D Candidates
Brittany Bryan, 38, regional manager for EBSCO.
Amount Raised: $17,672
Amount Spent: $986
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $16,685
Donors: 64 (or 36 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $276
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $700 or 4.2%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $10,598 or 65.9%
Biggest donors: $5,400 from Susan Yaggy, a retired health administrator from N.C. Foundation for Advanced Health Programs; $2,500 from Gregory Vasssie, a self-employed pharmacist; $2,500 from Andrew Epstein, a self-employed lawyer.
Notable spending: None
Kay Crowder, 63, retired, current City Council member.
Amount Raised: $32,934
Amount Spent: $6,872
Cash on hand at beginning: $39,136
Cash on hand at end: $65,205
Donors: 101 (there were 0 aggregated individual contributions)
Average Donation: $326
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $0
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $1,201 or 3.6%
Biggest donors: $5,400 from James Goodmon, president and CEO of Capitol Broadcasting; $5,000 from Clarence Mann, president of Vistabution LLC; $2,500 from John Kane, of Kane Realtor Corp.; $2,500 from Charlene Newsome, of Dominion Realty Partners.
Notable spending: $1,692 for catering
Saige Martin, 28, fund director for Open Road Alliance and Fidelity Charitable.
Amount Raised: $57,500
Amount Spent: $22,705
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $34,794
Donors: 132 (or 87 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $416
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $6,400 or 12%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $21,350 or 40%
Biggest donors: $5,400 from Noel Moore, a writer; $5,400 from Richard Moore, CEO of First Bancorp.; $5,400 from William Moore, executive director of The Eleanor Crook Foundation; $5,000 from Eleanor Crook, retired.
Notable spending: $9,612 for campaign manager; $985 for campaign literature; $1,225 for media consulting; $1,608 for photography
April Parker, 25, policy and development coordinator for Conservatives for Criminal Justice Reform.
A report was not available because Spencer did not submit paperwork to become a candidate until after the report deadline.
Raleigh District E Candidates
David Knight, 51, owner of Knight Consulting.
Amount Raised: $78,655
Amount Spent: $11,973
Cash on hand at beginning: $0
Cash on hand at end: $66,682
Donors: 119 (or 107 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $615
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $700 or 1%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $16,050 or 22%
Biggest donors: David Knight loaned himself $10,000. Other large donations include $5,400 each from Ann and Hamilton Sloan; $5,400 from Eric Braun, a retired attorney; $5,400 from Molly Painter, an investment banker at Plexus; $5,400 from Temple Sloan, an investor.
Notable spending: $6,000 for a campaign manager
Stef Mendell, 64, retired, current City Council member.
Amount Raised: $28,935
Amount Spent: $4,891
Cash on hand at beginning: $6,598
Cash on hand at end: $30,641
Donors: 114 (or 82 if aggregated individual contributions are not included)
Average Donation: $253
Total donations from outside North Carolina: $360 or 1.3%
Total donations from outside Raleigh: $1,060 or 3.8%
Biggest donors: $5,400 each from Dean and Sesha Debnam, of Workplace Options.
Notable spending: $1,000 for digital and volunteer management
