Money Speaks, Humboldt County Elections

I’ve always had a soft spot for elections. I’ve also always been a sucker for data. I love pouring through stacks of information, especially campaign contributions. Got obsessed with it when I was at the Eureka Reporter during the 2008 Election, and I thought to myself, “Hey, why stop just because I don’t work at a newspaper anymore.” So I decided to do this.

With the June Primary inching its way closer, the first round of campaign contribution statements for the year has arrived. Overall, you can see how the County Money Machine is dividing itself, which candidates are being backed by whom, and how heated the county races are going to be. In June, voters will select two candidates to move on to the November General Election in the DA, 4th and 5th Supervisor races. I forgot to pick up the forms for the Assessor race, so expect that down the road.

Here are some observations so far. Humboldt Redwood Company, which acquired Pacific Lumber after it went into bankruptcy, is not hedging its bet for one particular candidate in the Supervisor races, but rather throwing in support to the likely winners. The likely losers won’t see a dime. This is the first election cycle where the company could “speak” through its money, cause you know, the Supreme Court says money is free speech, and they’re new here. Whatever.

Then we have the ever-present “Development Money Machine.” That’s what I call the group of primarily Eureka-based businesses and business owners that tend to throw their money behind the same candidate as if a part of some economic bloc or something. I’m not going to say that the DMM makes up the bulk of the conservative monetary voice in elections here, but the bloc tends to contribute its money to conservative-leaning candidates, but not always. That, and I like to look at things beyond the dichotomy of liberal and conservative. Seeing as the bloc tends to consist of construction companies, suppliers, investment firms, real estate brokers, and timber companies, it’s a safe to say they are collectively financing the candidate most likely to not hinder development. And I am quite aware of the “other” money machine that tends to support liberal candidates, but in this cycle at least, I haven’t seen them yet.

In general, the DMM tends to include Don’s Rent All, Steve Strombeck of Strombeck Properties, Kramer Investments, C & K Industries, Shaw and Peterson Insurance, Barnum Timber, Mercer-Fraser, and Slack Family, LLC., to name a few. For the candidates in this race during this cycle, they collectively made large donations to challengers attacking incumbent seats, and two vacant ones, usually at least $500 a pop.

Now, down to the nitty-gritty. The numbers below represent all contributions garnered between Jan. 1 and March 17. And stay tuned, because I’m working on profile pages for each candidate with more in-depth information.

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District Attorney Race

Allison Jackson

$$$ Earned: $13,674

Not $$$ Earned: 0

Expenses: $11,838.29

Ending Balance: $1,835.71

Probably the strongest contender eyeing Paul Gallego’s chair and a devout critic, Allison Jackson received the blessing of the DMM, who were among her largest contributors. She got 19 contributions of $500, mainly from the Eureka business bloc. Half of her contributions came from businesses or organizations, while the other half came from individuals, and most were centered in Eureka. Her largest contributor was Harland Law Firm for $1,000.

Paul Gallegos

$$$ Earned: $7,093

Not $$$ Earned: 0

Loans: $20,000

Expenses: $16,197

Ending Balance: $10,895.98

The incumbent. Survived a recall initiated by PALCO about five years ago now, and has mixed reviews from the community. The majority of his money has come from a family member so far, David Gallegos, who gave $5,000 along with a $20,000 loan. Other notable contributions come from Dr. Ken Miller ($500) and the legal firm Zwerdling Dibble, LLC ($500). He only had five total contributions this cycle, most from McKinleyville and from his family member in Florida.

Kathleen Bryson

$$$ Earned: $8,750

Not $$$ Earned: 0

Loans: $5,000

Expenses: $12,508.47

Ending Balance: $1,241.53

Currently a defense attorney and also a former prosecutor under Gallegos, Bryson only had three contributions from individuals – two in-county and one in Palo Alto. She gave herself a $5,000 loan and owes $5,700.12 to Bug Press, Inc. for campaign paraphernalia. She only received three contributions for $100 each listed, and a whopping $8,450 in under $100 contributions.

Paul Hagen

$$$ Earned: $2,780

Not $$$ Earned: $167 worth

Loans: $7,400

Expenses: $4,537.52

Ending Balance: $5,642.48

An environmental lawyer and Arcata Planning Commissioner, Hagen is primarily backed, money-wise, by individuals at this point and by his own cash. Notable is a $99 contribution from Worth Dikeman, Jr., who I believe is the same Dikeman who took on Gallegos in the last DA election. His largest contribution comes from Darren B. Watts, a Chicago-based Attorney for $700. He even stated cash he got under $100 a pop, even though it’s not necessary. In fact, he was the only candidate to do that. That’s transparency for ya.

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Fifth District Board of Supes

Patrick Cleary

$$$ Earned: $15,057

Not $$$ Earned: $300 worth

Loans: $5,000

Expenses: $5,849

Ending Balance: $14,427

Humboldt State University loves this guy! He is president of Lost Coast Communications, which includes KHUM, KSLG, and The Point. Being Interim Manager of KHSU, I guess it makes sense that contributions would come from HSU President Rollin Richmond ($500), HSU VP of Administrative Affairs Burt Nordstrom ($200), HSU VP of University Advancement Rob Gunsalus ($100), and two other HSU employees. He also has the support of Arcata Mayor Alex Stillman ($100) and Zwerdling Dibble, LLC ($500). But the heavy hitters this cycle come from deep-pocketed Blue Lake Rancheria ($5,000), Zachery Zwerdling himself ($500) and Victor Koshkin, Retired, of  McKinleyville. Overall, his contributions mainly come from individuals centered in McKinleyville, Arcata, Trinidad, and Eureka.

Ryan Sundberg

$$$ Earned: $14,750

Not $$$ Earned: $17.43 worth

Expenses: $26,255.50

$$$ Carryover from Previous Statements: $41,500

Ending Balance: $31,630

The money is flooding this guy’s way. A council member of the Trinidad Rancheria Tribal Council and member of the Humboldt State University Business Advisory Council, Sundberg has been blessed with extensive cash flow from the DMM. His largest contributor is the Blue Lake Rancheria ($,5000), followed by $1,500 givings by C & K Industries, Shaw and Peterson Insurance, Don’s Rent All, and $1,000 from Justin Porteous of Mercer-Fraser. Other notable contributions come from Johanna Rodini ($100) and Humboldt Redwood Co. ($1,000), the only candidate this race who received funds from the company. The vast majority of his money this cycle comes from six companies plus the Rancheria.

Pat Higgins

$$$ Earned: $5,244

Not $$$ Earned: $0

Expenses: $4,254

Ending Balance: $989.49

Higgins is currently the Fifth District Harbor Commissioner, and apparently he likes bikes. All of his contributions come from individuals with the largest one coming from William M. Kier, of Blue Lake, for $2,000 total, followed by himself for $1,000, and a $750 contributions from a nursery owner in New Jersey.

Jeffrey Lytle

$$$ Earned: $0

Not $$$ Earned: $0

Loans: $500

Expenses: $1,651.48

Ending Balance: ??

Lytle is a resident of McKinleyville who ran for this seat back in 2006. He is an active participant in local politics and appears to be, from my standpoint, the only “everyday” person in the race. He also participates frequently on the blogosphere by the name “Henchmen of Justice.” He is funding his own campaign. He has no contributions, took a $500 loan out from JL Construction, and has spent out of his pocket. Talk about contrast — this guy with all the others in this race, wow.

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Fourth District Board of Supes

Virginia Bass

$$$ Earned: $22,152.03

Not $$$ Earned: $2,163 worth

Expenses: $21,775.45

$$$ Carryover from Previous Statements: $52,767.32

Ending Balance: $33,154.87

The conservatives REALLY want Bonnie Neely out. Don’t get me wrong, I really don’t have an opinion, yet, on who would be a better Supe, but the amount of money being injected into Bass’ coffers to fight Neely is astounding. Bass is currently the Mayor of Eureka, and has a long history with the council. The DMM appears to have placed its bet with Bass in this election, with her top contributor being Harvey Harper Co. ($2,000) and the usual suspects: Shaw and Peterson Insurance ($1,500), C & K Industries ($1,500), Steve Strombeck (#1,500),  and Don’s Rent All ($1,500). Humboldt Redwood Co. placed a $1,000 bet, along with a list of big business players in the community. Although most of her contributions this cycle came from individuals, the handful of direct contributions from businesses were the biggest boosters.

Bonnie Neely

$$$ Earned: $22,634

Not $$$ Earned: $15,625 worth

Loans: $5,000

Expenses: $13,832

$$$ Carryover from Previous Statements: $25,348

Ending Balance: $39,149

The incumbent-in-chief, Neely has warmed the Supe seat for many terms now. She has flipped parties and pissed off people on all sides of the spectrum. Nevertheless, she fights on. Neely wins the award for the Most Whopper of a Contribution thanks to, yet again, the Blue Lake Rancheria for $10,000! Now, that’s loyalty. I could pay off a chunk of my student debt with that. Even with that large contribution, and others, she still took out a $5,000 loan from Terry Farmer. Standford Professor Steven Blank clocks in next with $2,000, and she other large contributions from Zachrey Zwerdling, Attorney ($1,300), Neal Sanders, Attorney ($1,000), Micheal Atkins, Forester ($1,000), and Humboldt Redwood Co. ($1,000). The vast majority of contributions come from individuals and is centered around Eureka and Arcata.

Jeff Leonard

$$$ Earned: $2,444

Not $$$ Earned: $284 worth

Loans: $2,300

Expenses: $6,728

$$$ Carryover from Previous Statements: $4,838

Ending Balance: $838

Leonard will be termed out of the Eureka City Council this year, and he decided to enter a race against two T-Rexs ready to rip each other to shreds. He had several small contributions, but the bulk of this cycle’s income comes from a loan from family ($2,300).

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Humboldt County Sheriff

Mike Downey

$$$ Earned: $24,491

Not $$$ Earned: $2,542 worth

Expenses: $25,543

$$$ Carryover from Previous Statements: $1,905

Ending Balance: $3658

Currently the Undersheriff, i.e. the second-in-command, Downey is gunning for his boss’ seat, though his boss totally endorses this effort. Along with his endorsements from bigwigs like Congressman Mike Thompson and First District Supervisor Jimmy Smith, he has also gained the interest of the DMM. Of the cash earned this cycle, half are $500 or more a pop. His largest sponsor is the Humboldt County Correctional Peace Officers ($1,500), followed by $1,000 ones from Vista School District Plumber William Beeson, of Carlsbad, and Travis Campbell/TAP Ventures LLC. Other notables include Johanna Rodoni ($100) and Eureka City Councilman Frank Jager ($100). About two-thirds of his contributions come from individuals, centered mostly around Eureka.

Mike Hislop

$$$ Earned: $14,739.50

Not $$$ Earned: $6,823worth

Expenses: $7,960

Ending Balance: $6,778.80

Although they work in the same building, they are very much in different arenas. Hislop is currently a District Attorney Investigator with hopes of crossing over to the Sheriff side. His largest contributor in this cycle is Gary Stone, owner of the Best Western Humboldt Bay Inn ($1,300), followed by Pat J. Murphy, owner of Murphy’s Market ($1,000), and Bill Davison, of Bill Davidson Bail Bonds ($1,000). His financial support comes mainly from individuals centered around Eureka.

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