Nov. 18, 2002
It's the Money
By J. Barlow Herget
RALEIGH - Watching and reading most of the political commentators explain the November 5th election results reminds me of one of those sordid murder stories on TV.
Some fellow has just been caught after shooting a rival drug dealer or beating the life out of an elderly store clerk. The television reporter asks the killer’s neighbors and friends about the killer and they say things like, "He always said hello," or "He was real nice to his mother and little brother."
No one mentions that the thug had a criminal record as long as a legal pad.
In talking about the November 5th Election outcome, political pundits have offered a number of explanations. It was the Republican message. It was the Democrats’ lack of new ideas. It was the Confederate flag in Georgia or bad manners in Minnesota. All of these explanations may have merit.
But no one mentions the money. And in a great majority of the campaigns, the one with the most money wins. Look no further than the N.C. legislature, where, in the N.C. House, 88% of the time the candidate spending the most money won.
Candidates must have money to be considered a legitimate contender from the start. They must have money to maintain a campaign and to promote their messages. It’s the money that has become the cornerstone on which all other campaign stratagems stand or fall.
And this mid-term election was awash in money.
In state legislative elections, new records were set in individual races, according to Bob Hall of Democracy South, a non-profit watchdog group based in Carrboro. Hall pointed to the N.C. Senate campaign in Charlotte between incumbent Democrat Fountain Odom and wealthy challenger Robert Pittenger as the most expensive. The two candidates combined raised over $786,000 by Oct. 16. Pittenger won the race, outspending Odom by almost $100,000.
Incumbent Democrat Sen. Allen Wellons lost to Republican Fred Smith in another expensive contest. Wellons also lost the money race, $189,700 to $231,100.
The state Senate, however, remained in Democratic hands against a Republican tide because Democratic candidates on average were much better funded. For example, Sen. Eric Reeves, D-Wake, barely won against former Raleigh Mayor Paul Coble but Reeves had $369,991 to Coble’s $79,269. District 47 winner, Democrat Joe Sam Queen collected $309,172 to opponent Gregg Thompson’s $21,250.
The Center for Responsive Politics in Washington examines campaign spending at the national level, and it reported, "Just over 95 percent of U.S. House races and 75 percent of Senate races were won by the candidate who spent the most money."
At first glance, those figures are astounding. They are, however, somewhat misleading, because most of the winners are incumbents who face little competition. The Center stated, for instance, that 157 House and Senate candidates were "financially unopposed" of which 35 had no opponent at all.
In North Carolina, Reps. David Price, Howard Coble, Walter Jones, Mike McIntyre, Richard Burr, Sue Myrick, and Mel Watt faced token opposition. They enjoy not only the power and publicity attached to their office, but also the largesse of lobbyists who want continued access.
It is the handful of open or contested seats that attract the most attention and money. The critical Senate seats in Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Missouri, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Texas were the battlegrounds.
North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race appears to have been the most expensive in the nation. The two candidates spent over $22 million through mid-October, and final spending reports are likely to show millions more. Republican winner Elizabeth Dole reported raising and spending over $2 million more than Democrat Erskine Bowles at last account.
In some of these key races, Republicans were outspent, according to incomplete financial reports, especially in Missouri and Georgia. That fact added to the President’s success in making mid-term elections history when his party added seats in both the Senate and the House, and prompted much of the political commentary about message, competing ideas and strategies as being the keys to victory.
The Florida governor’s race received more than its share of such analysis because of the state’s role in the controversial 2000 presidential election and President Bush’s own commitment to the re-election of his brother, Gov. Jeb Bush. Governor Bush won by a surprisingly large margin. Few note that he outspent his opponent, 3-to-1. Indeed, at the national level, the Republican Party raised $511 million to the Democrats’ $327 million for this election.
Elections turn on many issues. Just don’t forget the money.
Barlow Herget is a writer and former member of the Raleigh City Council.
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