Donations put Doran on defensivePast gifts to GOP draw fire in DFL

12/17/2005

St. Paul, MN, December 16, 205 (AP)—In the seven months since developer Kelly Doran jumped into Minnesota politics, the DFL gubernatorial candidate has hit all of his party’s key themes.

Now, as party activists learn of past donations to Republicans, he’s found himself defending his Democratic credentials. Doran is one of four major candidates seeking the DFL nomination to take on Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty in 2006.

The campaign donation issue boiled over this week when Doran sent a letter to DFL Party Chairman Brian Melendez to respond to letters circulating among party delegates over his political giving.

Over the past five years, Doran contributed nearly $1,000 to Republican causes, including a $250 check he cut last December for the House Republican caucus. He also donated $1,000 to Independence Party gubernatorial candidate Tim Penny in 2002.

Doran and his wife, Maria, have upped their contributions to Democrats this year, spreading almost $30,000 among federal and state candidates and caucuses.

“I’m not a party activist. I never claimed I was,” Doran said in an interview Friday. “I don’t think that should be the rule for deciding who the candidate should be.”

Doran said he gave to state House Republicans while attending a fundraiser as a member of the Minnesota Shopping Center Association. In the letter to Melendez, Doran said “that contribution does not mean I support the House Republican agenda in any way.”

He added later, “Being a Democrat should not mean you are required to have blind obedience to every Democrat elected official’s point of view.”

Doran remains a largely unknown quantity in state politics. After making millions as a real estate developer, he decided this spring to run for U.S. Senate but shifted to the governor’s race in September. Doran has shown a willingness to dig deep in his own pocket to fund his bid.

He plans to run in next year’s DFL primary regardless of whether he has the party endorsement, which will be decided at the June convention. Besides Doran, the DFL candidates are Attorney General Mike Hatch and state Sens. Steve Kelley and Becky Lourey.

The cross-party contributions could help Doran with the centrist voting bloc he is courting even if they hurt his standing with hard-core Democrats. Dan Hofrenning, chairman of St. Olaf College’s political science department, said the donations bolster the candidate’s moderate image. That they were brought to light speaks volumes, Hofrenning said.

“It’s clear Kelly Doran has established himself as a credible candidate,” he said. “Clearly, people are worried about him.”