Disagreements over campaign contributions and criminal justice reform during a debate last night revealed fault lines between some of the Democrats running for the party’s nomination.
Six candidates running for Commonwealth’s Attorney, state Senator and Delegate who sparred during the Wednesday night debate agreed on green energy and defeating Republicans. But their disagreements on other topics showed that even in an all-Democratic playing field there are shades of blue.
Amazon has now chipped in campaign cash to every one of Arlington’s representatives in Richmond, kicking in the relatively small total of $3,500 to the seven state lawmakers representing the future home of one of its new headquarters.
The tech company spread out the contributions over the course of last November and December, according to new campaign finance reports released yesterday (Tuesday), starting to wade into Virginia politics in the immediate aftermath of its big announcement that it would soon bring 25,000 workers to offices in Pentagon City and Crystal City.
As Amazon moves into Arlington, it seems the company is ready to start spreading some of the wealth around to local lawmakers — but, so far, one has already turned down the tech giant’s cash.
Del. Alfonso Lopez (D-49th District) told ARLnow that Amazon sent him $1,000 in late October to back his re-election effort this year, just before announcing that it plans to set up a new headquarters in Pentagon City and Crystal City. In fact, Lopez’s South Arlington district covers some of the locations that the tech firm eventually plans to call home.
Del. Patrick Hope (D-47th District) is swearing off campaign contributions from Dominion Energy and calling on his fellow Democrats to do the same, becoming the latest in a line of state lawmakers to reject money from one of Virginia’s only regulated monopolies.
Hope announced at his annual pancake breakfast Saturday (Jan. 5) that he’ll now stop accepting campaign cash from the electric utility, according to a video posted by the Democratic blog Blue Virginia. Hope has accepted $9,500 from Dominion since he was first elected back in 2009, but decided to stop doing so as he gears up to run for a sixth term in office this fall.
Don Beyer and Lavern Chatman are the early leaders in fundraising in the June 10 Democratic primary to replace retiring Rep. Jim Moran (D).
Beyer, the former Virginia lieutenant governor, has a sizable lead over the rest of the field. Beyer has raised $668,497 in contributions so far, spending $218,617 and holding onto $449,636 cash on hand, according to Federal Election Commission filing records. Separately, Beyer said he plans to follow fellow Democratic candidate Del. Patrick Hope’s lead in releasing his most recent tax return, on May 15.
The two leading candidates for the vacant seat on the Arlington County Board are essentially even in fundraising with less than a week before the April 8 special election.
Democrat Alan Howze raised $84,984 in the first quarter of 2014, which ended March 28, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, which tracks campaign financing in the state. Republican- and Green-endorsed independent candidate John Vihstadt raised $84,154. However, if the candidates want to go on a spending spree in the final week, Vihstadt has $20,379 in cash on hand, compared to Howze’s $5,170.
The latest mailer shows Favola between Gov. Bob McDonnell and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli with the headline “These politicians have a lot in common” — a reference to the fact that all three have accepted donations from local real estate developer, philanthropist and Republican political donor Preston Caruthers. (Favolva accepted a $5,000 donation from Caruthers.)
“I’m disappointed that my friend Jaime Areizaga-Soto has been persuaded that victory in the primary can be achieved through slick negative campaign mailings,” Del. Bob Brink said in a statement said in a statement last night.
Areizaga-Soto told the Blue Virginia web site that it is “not ethical” for Favola to accept tens of thousands of dollars from developers who have recently had business before the county. She “should resign from the board or return the money immediately,” Areizaga-Soto said.
Earlier this year, Favola told ARLnow.com that her vote “can’t be bought.”
As of March 31, Krupicka had raised $101,143. That places him well ahead of Del. Adam Ebbin, who has raised $72,989, and Arlington School Board Chair Libby Garvey, who has raised $55,720.
Krupicka’s biggest donor is businessman Robert Henry Duggar, who contributed $5,000 to his campaign. Ebbin’s biggest donor is the pro-immigrant-rights Laborers’ International Union of North America, which also contributed $5,000. Garvey’s biggest donor is the campaign fund of Sen. Patsy Ticer, who is retiring after 16 years of representing the 30th District. Ticer for Virginia Senate has contributed $10,000 to Garvey’s campaign.
More than half of the nearly $60,000 raised by Favola has come from local developers, including a whopping $25,000 from John G. Shooshan, chairman of the Arlington-based Shooshan Company. Shooshan has had business before the board recently, related to the company’s massive Founders Square project in Ballston.
Other big contributors to Favola’s campaign include Preston Caruthers, who donated $5,000, Mark Silverwood, who donated $2,000, and Thomas Shooltz, who donated $1,000.
