ELECTION INSIDER 2014
Compare Gov. John Kasich and Ed FitzGerald on taxes, social issues and other topics that matter to you. Also, learn more about other candidates and issues on the May 6 ballot in our interactive voters guide at vote.daytondailynews.com
Gov. John Kasich holds more than a 5-to-1 cash advantage over his likely Democratic challenger Ed FitzGerald in the race for campaign money in this year’s governor’s race, campaign finance reports filed Thursday show.
Kasich raised $1.45 million and received an additional $632,000 in help from the Ohio Republican Party between January and mid-April, boosting his war chest to a healthy $8.5 million cash on hand, according to the pre-primary finance reports filed with the Ohio Secretary of State.
During the same period, FitzGerald, who is Cuyahoga County executive, raised $642,449 and now has $1.5 million in cash on hand, according to his campaign report.
“FitzGerald’s resources are so scarce he would have trouble running a congressional campaign much less a statewide campaign,” said Republican political strategist Mark Weaver. “He’s going to raise more money but he won’t raise enough to be competitive. Early fundraising problems are like a ship that starts to list. Once the ship starts to take on water, it starts sinking faster and faster.”
Others aren’t quite so negative about FitzGerald’s prospects.
University of Dayton political scientist Grant Neeley said FitzGerald has enough money to keep the campaign afloat but he’ll need more cash in a few months when a blizzard of TV advertising statewide is all but mandatory in an Ohio governor’s race.
“I think he’ll make a good run but I think it’s the question of when it comes down to having those extra dollars to swing the undecided voters. Will he have enough money in the coffers?” Neeley said.
Almost one-third of Kasich’s cash this period — $482,410 — came from 287 out-of-state donors, including $10,000 from former U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
Neeley said the national interest in the Ohio governor’s race seems to be more about whether Kasich will run for the GOP nomination for president in 2016.
Kasich traveled to Las Vegas last month to attend the Republican Jewish Coalition meeting, hosted by casino mogul and multi-billionaire Sheldon Adelson. Joining Kasich were other often-mentioned presidential possibilities New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.
The Kasich campaign raised $1.1 million from 285 donors who gave $1,000 or more, including 18 who donated the maximum $12,000. In all, he had 5,722 contributions and the average was $253.
Kasich campaign manager Matt Carle said in a written statement: “Clearly Ohioans see that John Kasich is producing results, and they want to keep our state moving forward and creating jobs for another four years.”
The FitzGerald campaign raised $417,225 from 122 donors who gave $1,000 or more, including four who maxed out at $12,000 apiece. FitzGerald also received a last-minute donation this week from the Ohio Democratic Party of $107,000. His out-of-state haul totaled $95,556 from 406 contributors.
“Working families are making it clear that their voices won’t be silenced by excessive campaign checks from Sheldon Adelson or the governor’s political appointees. The campaign’s digital and grassroots fundraising is stronger than ever, pulling in over $462,000 in the last 24 days alone. We look forward to running a campaign for Ohioans funded by Ohioans,” said FitzGerald campaign manager Nick Buis in a written statement.
The incumbent governor usually holds a fundraising advantage over the challenger. Kasich’s $8.5 million in the bank at this point in the race is ahead of the $7.12 million Democrat Ted Strickland had on hand in April 2010 and the $6.1 million Republican Bob Taft had in April 2002.
FitzGerald is on the ballot May 6 for a Democratic primary race against Dayton resident Larry Ealy. Ealy did not raise enough money to need to file a campaign finance report on Thursday.
In the downticket races for November’s election, Democratic challengers out-raised the incumbents this period in three of four statewide constitutional offices but the incumbents each have the advantage when it comes to their account balances. Here is a breakdown of those contests:
* Attorney General: Democratic challenger David Pepper raised $615,730 and has $1.16 million cash on hand while incumbent Republican Mike DeWine raised $308,208 and is sitting on $2.11 million.
* Auditor: Democratic challenger John Patrick Carney raised $328,253 and has $736,491 on hand while incumbent Republican Dave Yost pulled in $156,572 and has $916,643 cash on hand.
* Secretary of State: Democratic challenger Nina Turner raised $416,438 and has $493,786 cash on hand while incumbent Republican Jon Husted raised $308,345 and has $2.35 million in cash.
* Treasurer: Republican incumbent Josh Mandel raised $592,042 and has $2.4 million in his campaign account. Democratic challenger Connie Pillich raised $539,060 and has $1.17 million cash on hand.
* Ohio Supreme Court Justices Sharon Kennedy and Judi French, both Republicans, raised $137,295 and $259,510, respectively. Democrat John P. O'Donnell raised $89,791. The second Democrat in the race, Tom Letson, did not file a report by press time.
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