Senate election fundraising on pace to set record

October 16, 2007
Portland Press Herald

Election 2008: Democratic 1st District House candidates draw more
money than Republicans.

By PAUL CARRIER, Staff Writer

PORTLAND --The two candidates in Maine's hotly contested U.S. Senate race
have raised a combined total of close to $6 million so far,
inching closer to the $8 million spending record that was set in
a race for the same seat back in 2002.

Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins had pulled in $3.6 million
through September in her bid for another term, while
Democratic challenger Tom Allen, now a member of the U.S.
House, reported $2.2 million in contributions.

That put the combined total for both candidates at about $5.8
million, with more than a year to go before the election.

In the U.S. House race to succeed Allen, meanwhile, Democrat
Chellie Pingree continues to hold a strong financial lead over the
rest of the Democratic field in the 1st District, with $474,168 in
contributions at the end of September, according to fundraising
totals released Monday.

It was a Collins-Pingree matchup for the U.S. Senate five years
ago that set the $8 million record for the most expensive
political campaign in Maine history.

Collins won re-election that year and hopes to do so again by
beating back Allen. Collins has $3.1 million in cash on hand to
Allen's $2.1 million, according to the two campaigns, leaving the
Senate candidates with a combined $5.2 million in the bank and
plenty of time to raise more.

A onetime Common Cause director, Pingree is well ahead of
fellow Democrats Adam Cote, Michael Brennan, Mark Lawrence
and Ethan Strimling eight months before the June 2008 primary
to choose the Democratic nominee for the 1st District House
seat.

Each of the two Republicans in the House race -- businessman
Dean Scontras and Charles Summers, a Navy reservist who is
serving in Iraq -- trailed the entire Democratic field in
fundraising, with Scontras taking in about $101,000 and
Summers listing about $64,000 in donations at the end of last
month.

Lawrence was second on the Democratic side, with $225,761 in
contributions through Sept. 30, followed by Strimling with
$224,044, Cote with about $209,343 and Brennan with
$109,826, according to information supplied by their campaigns
or included in reports to the Federal Election Commission.

The Pingree campaign listed $300,358 in cash on hand. Pingree
has raised tens of thousands of dollars through ActBlue, a
national online clearinghouse that allows contributors to donate
to Democratic campaigns and committees across the country, as
well as through donations from Emily's List, which helps elect
Democratic women who support abortion rights.

The finance report shows that Pingree, the only woman in the
U.S. House race, has support "from individual women all across
the country" and from various prominent women's groups as
well, her campaign said in a statement.

Pingree's biggest Maine contributors included Jeanne Mattson of
Hallowell, Kevin Mattson of Hallowell and Richard Gowen of
Saco, each of whom gave $4,600. Several out-of-state
contributors gave that amount as well.

Lawrence, the York County district attorney and a U.S. Senate
candidate in 2000, reported $225,761 in contributions through
September, with $132,330 left to spend.

His biggest in-state contributions included $4,600 from his
mother, Evelyn Lawrence of Kittery; $4,600 from his father,
Irving Lawrence of Kittery; $2,300 from Nicholas Curro of
Biddeford; $2,000 from Patrick Hunt of Island Falls; and $1,500
each from Anne Carney of Cape Elizabeth, Neil Jamieson Jr. of
Saco and Sharon Sudbay of Portland.

"We really are in a good place right now to meet our strategy,"
said Marc Malon of the Lawrence campaign.

Strimling, who officially entered the race on Sept. 27, raised
$224,044 through Sept. 30. He still had $159,491 in cash on
hand at the end of September.

The extent of Strimling's fundraising had triggered considerable
interest before Monday's filing because, as a newly announced
candidate, he had not been required previously to disclose
contributions he received while he was exploring a
congressional bid.

Some of the three-term state senator's biggest Maine
contributions to date include $4,600 each from James Colston,
Rosemary Colston, Mary Beeaker and Barbara Fiore, all of
Portland; and L.L. Bean Chairman Leon Gorman of Yarmouth.

Other $4,600 donors were Lisa Gorman of Yarmouth, Max
Monks of Portland, businessman Robert C.S. Monks of Portland
and Todd Greenquist of Scarborough.

"I think this is a really strong first report," said Corey Haskell of
the Strimling campaign.

With $209,343 in contributions and $154,092 in cash on hand,
Cote had more money in the bank as of Sept. 30 than Brennan
had raised.

Cote's biggest contributions included $3,600 from Robert Fuller
Jr. of Winthrop and $2,300 each from several supporters. That
list includes William Caron Jr. of Cape Elizabeth, Theodore
Chadbourne of Cumberland Center, Dr. Katherine Pope of
Cumberland Foreside, Thomas Janenda of Rockland, Edward
McKersie of Portland, Melissa McKersie of Portland and Marcel
Payeur of Sanford.

Brennan, a former state lawmaker who was majority leader in the
Senate, trailed the better-heeled Democratic candidates with
$109,826 in contributions and $72,780 in cash on hand,
according to his report. More than $20,000 of that total came
from donors who used ActBlue.

"We do have less money," said campaign manager Peter Asen,
who sounded optimistic nonetheless.

"In order to win," he said, "we're going to run a smarter
campaign, and we have the best candidate."

Brennan's major in-state contributions included $2,050 from
Charles Moore III of Portland, $2,000 from Michael Asen of
Portland and $1,250 from Nancy Berrang of Portland.

Only two candidates have entered the race officially on the
Republican side, and they have not done as well financially as
any of the Democrats.

Scontras has raised about $101,000 so far and has about
$60,000 in the bank, according to Michael Pajak of his
campaign.

Summers has taken in about $64,000 and had about $44,500 in
cash at the end of September, said his wife and campaign
surrogate, Ruth Summers.

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