More than $150,000 in political fundraising has flowed into the coffers of candidates and causes competing on the May 2 ballot. Some comes from donors and some from the competitors themselves looking to get a leg up by self-financing their races.
As the election entered its final week, campaigns reported their financial activity to the town, as required by state and Brookline laws.
How $150K spent so far
The numbers below are incomplete; final filings won’t be compiled by the town clerk until after the election. They also don’t include any spending in the final week of the campaign, which often brings a last blitz of spending and activity.
Still, the reports offer a useful look at how the various candidates and campaigns have been raising and spending their money so far.
Candidates by the numbers
Most of the expenditures listed by candidates were for campaign advertising such as yard signs and mailers, as well as for catering and other costs associated with campaign events or parties.
Arden Reamer, one of three candidates for the Select Board, raised a total of $50,412, but $40,000 of that was personal loans she made to her campaign. The campaign has spent $37,020 to date.
Another of the Select Board candidates, Paul Warren, has raised $30,183 and spent $19,383. Incumbent John VanScoyoc has raised $10,976 and spent $1,928, although that was only as of April 17.
In the Brookline Housing Authority board of commissioners race, Susan Cohen has raised $10,912, of which $6,682 was a loan from herself. Her campaign has spent $9,356 on the race.
Her opponent, Kimberley Richardson, has raised $11,562 and spent $5,389.
In the race for a one-year seat on the School Committee, Natalia Linos raised $6,775, of which $1,200 was a loan from herself. Her campaign has spent $5,580.
Her opponent, Christopher Mutty, has raised $2,710 and spent $903.
Ballot questions attract funds
Yes for Brookline, the campaign supporting Questions 1 and 2 on the ballot, which ask for approval to raise taxes to build a new Pierce School and for town operating expenses, had $17,360 on hand as of April 14. More information about its fundraising and spending wasn’t immediately available. Recent documents from the Spend Smart Brookline campaign, which opposes the Pierce question, were not available at the town clerk’s office as of earlier this week.
A group called Parents for Yes on 3, which supports the ballot question to cap the number of retail marijuana stores at four, has raised $34,703 and spent $7,658.
Brookline for Everyone, which advocates for increased affordable housing, started the year with $3,000 on hand and raised $6,664. As of earlier this week, it had spent $9,624, almost all of its total on hand.
Complete filings for Brookline by Design, which advocates for more deliberative planning, weren’t available, but a report shows that it had $6,674 on hand as of April 18 and has spent $3,158 since then.