Miner leads Kimatian in fundraising efforts with one week until election
Stephanie Miner has raised and spent significantly more money than the two candidates running against her in the Syracuse mayoral race.
In the Nov. 3 general election, Miner, a Syracuse common councilor-at-large, will face Republican and Independent nominee Steve Kimatian, a former TV executive who secured the Republican nomination in a political upset. Miner is the Democratic and Working Families Party nominee.
The third candidate, Otis Jennings, the former commissioner of Parks, Recreation and Youth Programs for the city of Syracuse, is running as the Conservative Party candidate.
Since Miner secured the Democratic nomination over former state Rep. Joe Nicoletti on Sept. 15, she has received $138,220 in campaign donations. She has spent $85,643.80, according to financial disclosure reports on the New York State Board of Elections Web site.
Steve Kimatian has raised $43,083 since the primary. He has spent $55,215.51, according to the campaign finance reports.
Jennings has reported $500 in contributions but also reported $82,169.44 in expenditures, according to the reports.
Despite outpacing both opponents, Miner’s post-primary fundraising accounts for just 25 percent of what she’s raised all together. Leading up to Sept. 15, Miner had about $425,900 to compete with Nicoletti.
But Kimatian has nearly doubled what he had on Sept. 15 and has raised $84,334 total.
In Syracuse, Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly four to one. There are 38,863 registered Democrats compared to just 12,980 Republicans, according to the Onondaga County Board of Elections.
It was always the Democratic candidate’s race to lose, said Jeff Stonecash, a political science professor in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. To lose, Miner’s campaign would have to suffer a major scandal. ‘And then the Republican wins by being in the right place at the right time,’ Stonecash said.
The majority of Miner’s and Kimatian’s post-primary expenditures have been on advertising. Miner has spent $48,000 on television ads. Kimatian spent $32,218.15 on television ads and $1,918.04 on radio ads.
Jennings has not purchased any ads and has put $83,269.47 toward loan repayments.
Published on October 25, 2009 at 12:00 pm
