Rockland elections: Who's got the most campaign cash?

As the Nov. 7 general election draws near, some candidates in Rockland County have campaign war chests brimming with money, while others have been less successful at getting supporters to open up their wallets.

The following are some of the highest spending races in the county, according to the most recent reports filed with the state. The figures are limited to money raised and spent in 2017, and the remaining donations are from the most recent filing deadline, which was 11 days before the primary.

Rockland county executive

Rockland Executive Ed Day, a Republican who is seeking his second four-year term, is leading the pack.

Citizens for Day had more than $552,000 on hand. The incumbent raised nearly $193,000 in 2017 and had spent $100,000.

Maureen Porette, a Democrat, is challenging Day in November, but the political newcomer's fundraising is lagging significantly behind.

The Friends of Maureen Porette has raised $27,000 since the start of the year and spent approximately $16,300, according to the state database.

Her most recent filing 11 days before the primary showed her with nearly $3,500 remaining.

Day said he spent upwards of $450,000 in his successful 2013 campaign for county executive, and he expected his countywide campaign to reach that figure again this year.

Day said the fundraising advantage was a symbol that residents and businesses support his agenda. But he noted the fundraising edge will not change the way he runs his campaign.

"I run a campaign like I'm 20 points behind," Day said.

Porette said she was running grassroots, canvass-driven campaign fueled by volunteers, and has refused to accept contributions from corporations.

“I don’t think it should be pay to play. I don’t think that corporations should be paying local government officials,” she said.

The Democrat added that she was relying on canvassing door to door to spread her message.

“What makes people come to the polls is the contact, the phone banking, and knocking on doors,” Porette said.

Clarkstown

Supervisor George Hoehmann, a Republican, has outraised and outspent his opponent, Democrat Michael Sullivan, by nearly 2-1 thus far.

Hoehmann has raised $110,000 in 2017 through his Citizens for Hoehmann committee.

Hoehmann has spent about $86,500 on the campaign, and had more than $21,000 on hand before the primary, according to the state filing.

Sullivan, the Clarkstown police chief who was recently fired by the Town Council after a year-long legal battle over disciplinary charges, has received more than $57,000 this year through his Sullivan for Clarkstown committee.

The most recent filing showed the committee had spent more than $30,000, with about $30,300 remaining before the primary.

Sullivan, a 33-year police veteran, admitted it was "very tough to raise money" in his first political campaign, and the fundraising disadvantage "could have a big impact" on the election.

But Sullivan said he was running a campaign fueled by friends, family, and small donations.

“That definitely is negative for any candidate," Sullivan said about the fundraising gap, "but I’m hoping my message resonates with people more than the way the campaign is packaged and delivered.”

Hoehmann did not respond to requests for comment.

Orangetown

Democrat Thom Kleiner leads Republican Chris Day in political campaign donations.

Kleiner, a Democrat who held the supervisor post in Orangetown from 1996-2009, has raised more than $91,000 this year.

The most recent filing for his committee, Friends of Thom Kleiner, showed him with nearly $53,000 on hand before the primary after spending more than $36,600.

Chris Day’s committee, Day for Supervisor, has raised more than $37,500 in 2017 and spent more than $17,000 thus far, according to the state database.

The Republican had approximately $32,000 remaining before the primary.

Chris Day said he was not concerned about the fundraising gap.

“I know what it takes to execute our race and our plan for the election, and we’re going to have the funds to do that," Chris Day said.

Chris Day added that he expected the race to "ramp up" as the general election draws near and for donations to increase.

“People get more political in the fall and people give more in the fall," he said.

Kleiner said he has raised more in the current supervisor race than in his past campaigns. The media landscape, Kleiner said, is "not like it used to be": There are many more places for candidates to advertise their message and spend money, such as social media.

Kleiner added that he will continue to campaign as if he did not have a fundraising edge.

“As long as there’s an opponent on the ballot, who has the resources to spend money, you have to keep raising money and getting your message out," he said.

Surrogate Court Judge

The candidates aiming to become the next Surrogate Court judge are spending heavily for an office that carries a 10-year term.

Keith Cornell, a Democrat, has raised approximately $25,500 this year through his Friends of Keith Cornell committee, but has spent more than $122,000, according to the state database.

The most recent filing report showed Cornell had about $63,500 remaining before the primary.

Cornell has loaned his campaign $110,000, according to the state database. In addition, Cornell’s mother, Harriet Cornell, a Democratic Rockland legislator from West Nyack, loaned his campaign $50,000.

Keith Cornell won the Democratic line in the primary, according to unofficial results, and will also appear on the Conservative line in the election.

Vying for the judgeship is fellow Democrat Alden Wolfe, a Rockland Legislator in Montebello.

Wolfe’s committee, Alden Wolfe for Surrogate, raised approximately $77,000 this year – of which about $13,800 came from another political committee for Wolfe.

He spent more than $70,000 on the race and had approximately $6,700 remaining before the primary, according to the state database.

Wolfe won the Working Families line in the primary, according to unofficial results, and will also appear on the Women’s Equality and Reform lines.

Also on the ballot in November will be Republican Michael Koplen. A committee filed under Koplen's name on the state website had no financial data listed.

Koplen, a New Hempstead village justice, said he had not accepted any contributions due to concerns over potential conflicts of interest.

"If a judge does not accept contributions, that judge will never have a conflict of interest when a litigant comes before him, because if a litigant comes before you and has contributed to you, that’s a conflict of interest," he said.

Wolfe and Cornell did not respond to requests for comment.

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