Seven Portland City Council candidates including incumbent Commissioner Chloe Eudaly have qualified to receive taxpayer dollars to help fund their campaigns, leading to more than $550,000 set to be doled out as of Friday, according to the city.

Mayoral candidate Sarah Iannarone leads the way with $165,362 in matching contribution funds to date from the Open and Accountable Elections Program, said Susan Mottet, the initiative’s director. That’s based on $39,113 raised from 1,146 verified contributors.

Iannarone was the first to qualify in October for the city’s public campaign finance program and the lone candidate in the mayor’s race, which has drawn 11 candidates including incumbent Mayor Ted Wheeler.

City commissioner candidates Candace Avalos, a Portland State University student adviser, Tim DuBois, a local carpenter, and Carmen Rubio, executive director of nonprofit Latino Network, have also qualified for public campaign funding and are seeking the seat being vacated by Commissioner Amanda Fritz. Along with Eudaly, Mingus Mapps, a former political science professor who used to work for Eudaly in the city’s office of Community and Civic Life, and Seth Woolley, a software developer, also qualified for public funding in that race.

Former Portland Mayor Sam Adams, who is also challenging Eudaly, is still waiting to be certified by the city’s auditor’s office to appear on the May ballot. The auditor’s office said Friday that Adams still hasn’t submitted 100 signatures from registered Portland voters required to qualify him.

He has until March to do so, but he can’t be enrolled in the public finance program or receive funds until he is officially on the ballot, Mottet said.

The city public campaign finance program is expected to have $4 million available in 2020, with $2.7 million available for qualified candidates in the May 19 primary, Mottet said.

Portlanders voted to end a similar campaign finance system in 2010 after it was determined that candidates forged signatures needed to qualify for funding and engaged in improper spending. This included one failed city council hopeful who used public money to pay her daughter $15,000 for internet research.

The Portland City Council approved creating the new program in 2016. The city started putting aside money last year for the 2020 election cycle. The city has described the program’s goal as trying to reduce the perception of corruption created by the influence of money in politics.

Wednesday was the last day candidates in the mayor’s race and for Eudaly’s and Fritz’s seats could submit signatures and donations required to receive taxpayer funds. Candidates in the special election to complete late Commissioner Nick Fish’s term, which expires at the end of 2022, have until Feb. 7 to declare they want to enroll in the program and until March 24 to be certified.

The program provides $6 in taxpayer funds per $1 raised from eligible donors. A $5 donation, for example, would be matched with $30 from the taxpayer fund to yield a $35 contribution.

Mayoral candidates had to raise at least $5,000 from at least 500 verified Portland residents to qualify for the matching funds and candidates for city commissioner had to collect at least $2,500 in contributions from at least 250 Portlanders.

Candidates could accept at least $5 and no more than $250 from each donor.

Tim Crail, Commissioner Amanda Fritz's chief of staff, said the program has met expectations so far. Most people who declared an intent to enroll met certification requirements. Fritz’s office oversees the program.

Crail said the unanticipated 2020 race for Fish’s seat raised the possibility that the program may not have enough funds available for all candidates who intend to seek that seat using public matching money.

"The exciting part is that every candidate running clearly recognizes the value of the program and wants to use it," he said. "The downside is we need a little time to build up the fund to handle something like this."

Because she is running for mayor, Iannarone can receive up to $304,000 in matching funds for the primary election and up to $456,000 more if there is a general election. Commissioner candidates can qualify for as much as $200,000 in the primary and up to $240,000 more in the runoff.

As of Friday, seven people seeking to complete Fish’s term had given notice that they are trying to qualify for the program, including Portland Rental Services Commissioner Margot Black; Metro Councilor Sam Chase; Tera Hurst, who worked as chief of staff for former Portland Mayor Charlie Hales; and former Multnomah County Commissioner Loretta Smith.

If all 15 people, including Adams, qualify for the program and each receive the maximum allotment, the city would need $3.1 million to meet the 6-to-1 match for the primary.

The city charter allows Mottet at any point of the election cycle to request additional public money from the city council if the amount already deposited in the program fund won’t be enough. The charter also allows her the option of lowering the contribution match in line with the money available.

Mottet said she is awaiting the Feb. 7 deadline to determine the maximum amount of money the program would need in the event everyone qualifies and hits the maximum allowable funds. She said she told the candidates in the other three races Thursday that they would continue to receive the full 6-to-1 match through the Nov. 3 general election.

“We’re waiting on more data to determine what is needed to keep the match rate at 6-to-1 for the special election,” she said.

As of Friday, Rubio had been approved for $142,098 in matching funds based on $53,804 raised from 535 verified contributors.

Mapps has been approved for $69,142 in matching funds for $18,279 from 253 donors; Woolley has been approved for $65,676 based on raising $11,646 from 362 donors; Eudaly has been approved for $41,575 for $8,879 from 254 donors; DuBois has been approved for $38,394 for $6,899 from 292 donors; Avalos has been approved for a $29,100 match for $5,475 from 250 donors.

Mottet said Adams would be eligible for $53,766 in matching funds if he is certified for the program. He has raised $12,936 from 261 verified contributions.

-- Everton Bailey Jr; ebailey@oregonian.com | 503-221-8343 | @EvertonBailey

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