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ASPEN — Tim Semrau leads in campaign contributions for Aspen’s mayoral race — he's more than $8,000 ahead of Mick Ireland, according to the latest campaign finance reports.
Mayoral candidate Torre’s campaign war chest added $2,175 in the latest cycle — from April 18 to May 1 — boosting his total to $8,096. Bonnie Behrend reported just one contribution of $100 during the cycle — the total amount she has raised for the entire campaign, thanks to contributor Sandy Israel of Basalt.
Semrau, meanwhile, raised $15,320 during the latest cycle, increasing his campaign fund to $33,569, records released Tuesday show. During that period, Ireland reeled in $6,590 to up his total to $24,929.
The cutoff for campaign contributions for the May 8 election was Tuesday.
Ireland had support from two former Aspen mayors — John Bennett and Rachel Richards, a current Pitkin County commissioner. Commissioner Dorothea Farris, who once sat on the Pitkin County board with Ireland, also donated to his cause, as did state Sen. Gail Schwartz, D-Snowmass Village.
Ireland garnered support from Hollywood director and local resident Bob Rafelson, as well as some local lawyers and three people with newspaper ties: Allyn Harvey, former managing editor of The Aspen Times; Sara Garton, a proofreader at the Times; and Alison Danforth, a bookkeeper at the Aspen Daily News and the sister of its owner, Dave Danforth.
The list of Semrau backers included many prominent Aspen developers, real-estate agents and those with ties to the construction industry. Dwayne Romero, a developer and candidate for Aspen City Council, supported Semrau to the tune of $50.
Torre raised an additional $2,175, for total contributions of $8,086, and spent $3,519 for advertising, postage and T-shirts.
While Semrau outpaced his competitors, Ireland outspent the bunch, plunging $11,054 into advertising and mailers, compared with the $10,394 Semrau spent on advertising, including an additional $3,417 with his marketing firm, the Darnauer Group.
<b>Romero leads council candidates</b>
So far the City Council race doesn’t appear to be as costly as the mayoral version, with Romero leading the eight candidates with, $9,040, followed by Michael Wampler at $7,606 for the campaign so far.
Real-estate brokers topped Romero’s list of backers, and the bulk of his $ 6,232 expenditures went to advertising in local papers.
LJ Erspamer spent $2,384.17 of his own money on advertising and office supplies, records show.
Andrew Kole collected an additional $400 in contributions, totaling $517 (on top of $268 from a former campaign) he spent mostly on advertising.
Toni Kronberg didn’t collect money, but her backers paid a total of $2,170 for everything from the materials for handmade signs ($3 each), newspaper ads and fliers.
Michael O’Sullivan collected $1,000, including contributions from local real-estate brokers. He listed no expenditures.
Steve Skadron raised an additional $3,325, for a total of $4,575, and spent $121 for newspaper advertising recently. His total expenses were $333.
Michael Wampler collected an additional $2,670 over the last few weeks for a total of $7,606. He spent nearly all the funds collected on advertising and a meet-the-candidate party at Eric’s Bar for $250. Wampler counts a handful of old-time Aspenites — including Sheriff Bob Braudis — among his backers.
Charles Agar’s e-mail address is cagar@aspentimes.com.
Mayoral candidate Torre’s campaign war chest added $2,175 in the latest cycle — from April 18 to May 1 — boosting his total to $8,096. Bonnie Behrend reported just one contribution of $100 during the cycle — the total amount she has raised for the entire campaign, thanks to contributor Sandy Israel of Basalt.
Semrau, meanwhile, raised $15,320 during the latest cycle, increasing his campaign fund to $33,569, records released Tuesday show. During that period, Ireland reeled in $6,590 to up his total to $24,929.
The cutoff for campaign contributions for the May 8 election was Tuesday.
Ireland had support from two former Aspen mayors — John Bennett and Rachel Richards, a current Pitkin County commissioner. Commissioner Dorothea Farris, who once sat on the Pitkin County board with Ireland, also donated to his cause, as did state Sen. Gail Schwartz, D-Snowmass Village.
Ireland garnered support from Hollywood director and local resident Bob Rafelson, as well as some local lawyers and three people with newspaper ties: Allyn Harvey, former managing editor of The Aspen Times; Sara Garton, a proofreader at the Times; and Alison Danforth, a bookkeeper at the Aspen Daily News and the sister of its owner, Dave Danforth.
The list of Semrau backers included many prominent Aspen developers, real-estate agents and those with ties to the construction industry. Dwayne Romero, a developer and candidate for Aspen City Council, supported Semrau to the tune of $50.
Torre raised an additional $2,175, for total contributions of $8,086, and spent $3,519 for advertising, postage and T-shirts.
While Semrau outpaced his competitors, Ireland outspent the bunch, plunging $11,054 into advertising and mailers, compared with the $10,394 Semrau spent on advertising, including an additional $3,417 with his marketing firm, the Darnauer Group.
<b>Romero leads council candidates</b>
So far the City Council race doesn’t appear to be as costly as the mayoral version, with Romero leading the eight candidates with, $9,040, followed by Michael Wampler at $7,606 for the campaign so far.
Real-estate brokers topped Romero’s list of backers, and the bulk of his $ 6,232 expenditures went to advertising in local papers.
LJ Erspamer spent $2,384.17 of his own money on advertising and office supplies, records show.
Andrew Kole collected an additional $400 in contributions, totaling $517 (on top of $268 from a former campaign) he spent mostly on advertising.
Toni Kronberg didn’t collect money, but her backers paid a total of $2,170 for everything from the materials for handmade signs ($3 each), newspaper ads and fliers.
Michael O’Sullivan collected $1,000, including contributions from local real-estate brokers. He listed no expenditures.
Steve Skadron raised an additional $3,325, for a total of $4,575, and spent $121 for newspaper advertising recently. His total expenses were $333.
Michael Wampler collected an additional $2,670 over the last few weeks for a total of $7,606. He spent nearly all the funds collected on advertising and a meet-the-candidate party at Eric’s Bar for $250. Wampler counts a handful of old-time Aspenites — including Sheriff Bob Braudis — among his backers.
Charles Agar’s e-mail address is cagar@aspentimes.com.
