Parties’ fundraising efforts lag past cycles
"MN Party News"07/29/2010
by Charley Shaw
Politics in Minnespta
Published: July 28,2010
Minnesota’s six biggest political party units — the state GOP and DFL, and their four legislative caucuses — raised and transferred a total of $5.06 million during the pre-primary reporting period this year.
That’s about $3.3 million less than the $8.4 million they reported at the same point during the last comparable election cycles. (For the House party caucuses, which stand for reelection every two years, that’s 2008; for the Senate caucuses and state parties, 2006. See accompanying table for details.)
The Republican Party of Minnesota accounted for $2.5 million of the total decline — though, as state GOP chair Tony Sutton pointed out, a total of $1.68 million in contributions to the party’s federal committee offset much of that discrepancy; there was no comparable federal fund in place in 2006. The Senate DFL and GOP took comparatively meager hits, dropping a combined $95,000 in total receipts versus 2006.
The downturn is not a surprise. For Minnesota’s key party units, this year’s campaign fundraising race is a fraught affair. Recent events have threatened the campaign finance version of a natural disaster.
If you’re a Democrat trying to shake the trees for campaign cash, the unprecedented sums being spent on the DFL gubernatorial primary on Aug. 10 likely mean a diversion of funds that otherwise would have been deposited with the House or Senate caucus campaign funds.
If you reside on the GOP side of the aisle, you might be flustered trying to get people to contribute to the GOP Party amid the excitement this year about new political action committees that can accept direct corporate largesse.
Add in the bipartisan difficulties of a tough economy, a shortened primary season and the elimination of the political contribution refund (PCR) program, and you have the recipe for an extremely difficult fundraising environment.
For his part, House Republican Campaign Committee (HRCC) Treasurer Rep. Matt Dean, R-Dellwood, thinks this week’s pre-primary fundraising reports are an indication that his caucus is holding up against the challenges.
“It’s hard to say. We don’t really have anything to compare it to. Definitely those [business PAC] folks are competing [with us] in some respects but not in others,” said Dean of the forces unleashed in the wake of the Citizens United decision by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The HRCC started the year with $449,782 and raised $542,000 as of July 19. House Republicans have spent $289,744 and have $702,000 in cash on hand.
Despite reporting $700,000 stashed in the bank, Dean said House Republicans aren’t holding back on hiring field staff and other campaign-related spending.
“I think if you look at the report, it reflects that fact that we’ve got our ground game running. …
Most of it is [spent] at the end. But we’re not in the getting-ready phase anymore. We’re in full campaign mode,” Dean said.
House DFL Caucus Treasurer Rep. Steve Simon, DFL-St. Louis Park, noted that fundraising has “definitely been a challenge” for his group due to the focus on the DFL gubernatorial primary. But he said the fundraising results indicate a strong position heading into the fall.
“We are really, really happy with this,” he said. “The bottom line is not only did we outraise the House GOP Caucus, but we widened the gap from two years ago.”
Senate Republicans, who raise money through the Senate Victory Fund, started the year with $162,947 in the bank and raised $205,142 as of July 19. They’ve spent $140,600 and have $227,435 in cash on hand.
The House and Senate Republican legislative caucuses are at a serious disadvantage in seats held; DFLers hold an 87-47 majority in the House and a 46-21 edge in the Senate. And even in a year when the GOP harbors hopes of taking over one chamber or both, their 2010 pre-primary numbers trail the majority party.
The Senate DFL Caucus outraised all three of the other legislative caucuses. Senate DFLers, who started the year with $330,600, raised $942,000 through July 19. The caucus has spent $632,500 and has $640,600 in the bank, according to the report.
Among major contributors, the state DFL Party gave Senate DFLers $125,000. Former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton’s ex-wife, Rockefeller heiress Alida Messinger, contributed $50,000. Twin Cities investor Vance Opperman contributed $25,000.
The AFSCME labor union added $50,000, as did the Mille Lacs Bank of Ojibwe.
The House DFL Caucus started the year with $305,600 in the bank and raised $812,000 through July 19. House DFLers have spent $344,000 and reported $773,470 in cash on hand. Their spending includes a $247,000 contribution to the State DFL Party.
Like their Senate counterparts, House Democrats benefited from traditional constituencies, most notably organized labor and Native American tribes with gaming interests.
The AFSCME union and the Laborer’s Council District of Minnesota and North Dakota both gave $50,000. The Shakopee Mdwakanton Sioux Community gave $100,000 and the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe contributed $80,000.
The state’s two largest political parties have also scrambled for campaign dough this year.
The State DFL Central Committee, which started the year with $17,755 in the bank, raised $1.88 million in cash and spent the vast majority of it ($1.78 million), finishing the period with $118,000 in the bank.
Among top individual donors, Messinger gave $193,000 to the state party. Other big individual contributors included Jim Deal ($11,000), Robert Haselow ($10,000), Kimberly Lund ($25,000), John Morgan ($13,000), and Opperman ($15,000).
Among institutions that gave big to the DFL Party, the Education Minnesota teachers union gave the party $35,000, Emily’s List gave $30,000, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Engineers Local 292 Political Education Fund gave $69,800 and the Laborer’s District Council gave $70,000. Among tribal contributions, the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe gave $101,000.
The Minnesota GOP meanwhile started the year with $60,530 and raised $677,487, according to its pre-primary report. The state Republican Party spent $724,000 and had $13,797 in the bank on July 19.
One major difference between the state GOP and DFL was reflected in the contributions flowing up to the state Democratic party from its House and Senate party units: The House DFL Caucus gave $247,000, the Senate DFL Caucus $508,000.
The Republican Party of Minnesota started the year with $60,530 and raised $677,487, according to its preprimary reports. The party spent $724,000 and had $13,797 in the bank on July 19. Top donors included recently retired Best Buy CEO Brad Anderson, Stanley Hubbard of Hubbard Broadcasting, Taylor Corp. and Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, and former Target CEO Bob Ulrich, each of whom gave $40,000. Primera CEO Robert Cummins led the pack with a $100,000 donation.
The state GOP faces the same challenge as Dean and the HRCC in dialing for dollars after the January 2010 Citizens United ruling, which struck down the ban on corporations spending directly out of their treasuries to influence elections. New political action committees, mostly notably Minnesota Forward, have actively solicited money from the business community.
GOP Party Chairman Tony Sutton said the party has been reminding donors that the party does grassroots efforts like get-out-the-vote and voter identification efforts that the big business PACs don’t do.
“There are some things only the party can do,” Sutton said.