Challenger mounts pricey campaign

Dave Brooks

Challenger Keith Bohr is sitting on the biggest campaign war chest,

with more than $33,000 in the bank as the City Council election heads

into its final month.

Incumbent Debbie Cook has raised the most money from outside

sources.

Financial filings released Tuesday evening show that Cook has

raised more than $18,400 in political donations, all of which have

come in donations typically worth a couple hundred dollars.

Tuesday was the deadline for candidates to show how much they had

raised and spent on their campaigns through the end of September.

City campaign finance law allows individuals and businesses to make

$300 maximum donations to candidates, granted the candidates disclose

who has given them money.

Only 12 of the 16 candidates had their paperwork on file with the

Huntington Beach City Clerk’s office by Tuesday’s deadline, but

Deputy Clerk Kelly Mandic said that claims that were simply

postmarked by Tuesday would be accepted.

Although Cook is leading the contribution race with 24 maximum

$300 donors, Bohr has amassed the biggest campaign war chest, worth

more than $33,000. About $30,000 of that is coming out of Bohr’s own

pocket, although he did raise more than $13,000 in cash donations

including 30 contributors who pledged the maximum $300. Bohr has

already spent $10,283 on his campaign, much of it on mailers,

campaign literature and signs.

“There are over 107,000 registered voters, and to reach those

folks it costs a lot of money,” he said. “Last time we came up short

and we spent that much.”

Bohr’s second highest expense was the $2,200 he gave to the city

of Huntington Beach to appear on the sample ballot. That sample

ballot fee was nearly double what candidate Peter Albini raised. Of

the seven candidates on file with the City Clerk’s office that had

raised any money, Albini has brought in the least, including a loan

from his wife to cover the $2,200 filing fee. Newcomer Blair Farley

came in right in front of Albini, raising $1,490.

Restaurant owner Joe Carchio emerged this year with a powerful war

chest, worth more than $10,000, without spending any money from his

own pocket. Nearly every donation was from residents of Huntington

Beach.

“It’s all grass-roots,” he said. “The people who donated to me

were regular people that gave me $25, or $50 or even $100. I’m

honored that someone would give me their hard earned money like this.

It means more to me than anything else.”

Candidates in the past two races have typically raised well more

than $30,000.

Retired Civil Servant Jim Moreno has decided to spend more than

$5,000 out his pocket this year on his campaign, while raising an

additional $6,800 in cash. Financial consultant Don Hansen has raised

about $10,000 in donations this election and plans to spend about

$1,500 of his own money.

The biggest contributor appeared to be Toyota of Huntington Beach,

which gave a total of $900 to Carchio, Hansen and Bohr. Rainbow

Disposal was second with $850 in political contributions to Carchio,

Bohr, Hansen and Moreno.

* DAVE BROOKS covers City Hall. He can be reached at (714)

965-7173 or by e-mail at [email protected].