State Sen. Kevin Van Tassell, whose fundraising abilities have been among the most impressive of any politician who represents at least part of Summit County, brought in more money this campaign than the other legislative candidates on the local ballot.
In a recent filing with state election officials, the final one before Election Day, Van Tassell, an incumbent Republican from the Vernal area, indicated he had raised $35,550.92 during 2010 while spending $12,074.97. He had $23,475.95 left in his campaign coffers to spend in the final days of the campaign.
Van Tassell’s fundraising efforts in the period between late August and late October were especially active among corporate interests. He said some of his corporate donors have operations in the Uinta Basin, a sprawling area east of Summit County that is in District 26 of the Senate.
“They certainly come and talk, and I talk with them a lot,” Van Tassell said about the corporate interests.
Van Tassell pledged he is not beholden to the corporate interests that donated to his campaign.
Some of the donations Van Tassell received in the final weeks of the campaign include:
Other interests that donated to Van Tassell included the power industry, the petroleum industry, homebuilders and the Republican Party in Duchesne County.
A Vernal man named Robert Williams donated $2,000 to the Van Tassell campaign, with the senator saying Williams is a friend.
Van Tassell’s Democratic opponent, Snyderville Basin resident Paul Dowland, reported he raised $3,049.17 but spent $4,368.90 by early in the week, leaving his campaign nearly $1,320 in the red as Election Day approached.
Dowland’s largest contributor in the final weeks was the AFL-CIO, which gave the campaign $500. The Summit County Democratic Party, meanwhile, put $348 into the campaign on Sept. 24.
Highlights of the other Statehouse campaigns involving districts that stretch into Summit County include:
Brown brought in $26,553.03 and spent $20,217.93, leaving him with $6,335.10 to spend in the final days of the campaign. Brown’s donors included the Utah Association of Realtors, an industry group representing homesellers, which gave $1,000. The political-action committee tied to Newfield Exploration Company donated $500. Other interest groups that gave included homebuilders, school employees and petroleum marketers.
Ken Woolstenhulme, a former member of the Summit County Commission, meanwhile, donated $200 to Brown’s re-election bid.
Wright took in $14,686.10 in donations and spent $13,756.52, leaving him with $929.58 in the final stretch of the campaign. Wright loaned $6,000 to the campaign during a 10-day stretch in September and October, the largest source of funding from late August until mid-October.
Other donors to Wright included the Committee for a Democratic Majority, a state-level organization, which gave $750, and a political group tied to Planned Parenthood in Salt Lake City, which put $500 into the campaign.
Some of the individuals who donated to Wright included Alex and Kathy Lofft, a Park City couple who gave $500. Kathy Lofft once unsuccessfully campaigned for the District 53 seat.
Briscoe had raised $25,563.64 while spending $19,589.13, leaving him with $5,974.51 in his campaign coffers for the final stretch of the election. Some of Briscoe’s donations came from organized labor, including a $250 donation from a communication workers union and $350 from a Salt Lake City-based chapter of the Teamsters union.
Political-action committees that donated to Briscoe included a school employees association, which gave $200, and a $250 donation from the Equality Utah organization, which promotes gay rights. Qwest gave the campaign $250. Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, a Democrat, gave Briscoe $50. The Planned Parenthood Action Council political-action committee donated $50.
Raile had brought in $8,670 and had spent $8,155.31, a spending pace that left him with $514.69 in the campaign coffers. Raile received $1,300 in two donations from the Salt Lake County Republican Party and another $1,000 from Thomas and Linda Turpin, who are from Salt Lake City.