Mayoral candidates raise nearly $160,000 in past month

Money is flowing in the race for Wichita mayor.

The top two candidates raised nearly $160,000 between Feb. 20 and March 26, the latest campaign finance reporting period, according to reports filed with the Sedgwick County Election Office.

That amount includes a $50,000 loan that Sam Williams, a retired advertising executive, made to his campaign. He raised $46,048 from contributors.

Jeff Longwell, a City Council member and printing shop owner, raised $62,545 in the same timeframe, all from donors, according to finance reports.

“We run the campaign like we run city government, watching every penny and trying to be as efficient as possible,” Longwell said. “We’re happy with where our fundraising is at, and we exceeded our original expectations.”

Williams did not return calls seeking comment.

Williams’ loan to his campaign is a “very significant sum of money” for a local election, said Russell Fox, political science professor at Friends University.

“You want to show that you’re raising a lot of money, because that communicates to people that you’re a serious candidate and a lot of people support you, and that gives you an aura of inevitability,” Fox said, and contributing $50,000 boosts the total numbers.

With a week until the election, candidates also have to consider their final push and the cost of advertisements and campaigning, he said.

“Obviously (the donation) is to make himself look like an even more well-supported and popular candidate than he probably actually is,” Fox said. “But it’s also about simply ‘I’ve got a lot of bills to pay over this last week if I’m going to stay competitive.’ ”

Politicians regularly donate to their own campaigns, Fox said. But some voters may see the self-donation as showing a class divide.

On the flip side, the donation of that much money could show some voters that Williams is willing to make a personal sacrifice in order to convince people that he’s right for mayor, Fox said.

Both candidates plan to attend several events this week, including a forum hosted by the League of Women Voters at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at the library, 223 S. Main. A brownbag lunch begins at 11:30 with the forum starting at noon.

They will also attend a forum for the Wichita Downtown Lions Club at noon Wednesday at the Midian Shrine Temple, 130 N. Topeka.

Both events are open to the public.

The general election is April 7.

Jeff Longwell

Longwell, 55, is the owner of Ad Astra Printing and has been a City Council member representing District 5 in northwest Wichita for the past eight years. He was a member of the Maize school board for 12 years.

Overall fundraising total: $111,445

Total raised this period: $62,545

Cash on hand: $17,056

Largest contributors: Among those who have contributed a total of $1,000 each to the campaign since it began: industrial parts supply executive Bob Aldrich; investment adviser Don Barry; banking manager Lora Barry; financial adviser Janice Bosch; chief financial officer Ryan Brooks.

Industrial construction executive Ronald Coleman; construction executive Marty Cornejo; construction executive Ronald Cornejo; aerospace fabrication business owner Steven Cox; auto sales owner John Culver; physician Alan Fearey; former City Council member Sharon Fearey; business broker executive Steven Fischer.

Paving businessmen Joshua, Larry and Terry Hacker; pawn shop executive Bruce Harris; food services executive Joseph Hemmelgarn; food services executive Lisa Hemmelgarn; retiree Dee Johnson; architect Joseph Johnson; Realtor Lisa Jones; Slawson Cos. real estate executive Jerry Jones; retiree Jon Kardatzke; retiree Lorna Kardatzke; residential construction executive Don Klausmeyer.

Real estate developer Kevin and Nancy Mullen; electrical contractor James Rowe; financial services adviser Judy Schoenecker; health club executive Stephen Schoonover; oil/gas and real estate businessmen R. Todd Slawson and Stephen Slawson; lawyer Harvey Sorenson; attorney Jeff Spahn; retiree Lynn Stephan; engineer Brent Wooten.

These people have contributed $500 each since Feb. 20: business owner Mark Nordyke; office manager Linda Nordyke; real estate developer Christian Ablah; corporate security businessman Randal Landen; construction/trucking executive John Duling; construction office manager Liz Feiock; construction/trucking executive Ron Duling; construction executive Dallas Mies; attorney Andrew Hutton; attorney Mark Hutton.

Retiree Bertha Morgan; residential construction executive Jayson Russell; Realtor Bree Kelley; aviation supply manager James Lee; truck driver Douglas McKnight; painter Dennie Forshee; food service saleswoman Mary Lindeman; real estate business owner John McKay; retiree Dorothy McKay; homemaker Shelly Cox.

Commercial real estate builder Mark Cox; commercial real estate associate McKenzie Cox; homemaker Donna Aldrich; commercial properties businessman George David; retiree Orlin Ard Jr.

Construction executive Richard Kerschen; auto sales businessman Steven Hatchett; auto sales businesswoman Janet Hatchett; surgeon Pat Dinh Do; homemaker Sylvia Orozco-Do; Realtor Mary Laham; construction executive D. Craig Nelson; real estate property manager Daniel Taylor Jr.; homemaker Susan Taylor; construction business owner Robert Wells; construction office manager Patty Wells; Realtor Bradley Tidemann; homemaker Ashton Tidemann.

Accountant Amy Tillison, accountant Kelli Sigler; Realtor Bradley Saville; Realtor Dewey Cortner; commercial concrete and paving manager Georges Ausseil; auto sales owner Roger Scholfield; pawn shop administrator Macaela Harris; homemaker Soncha Hacker; retiree George Pearson; real estate developer Eugene Vitarelli.

Engineer Christopher Bohm; architect Wesley Darnell; retiree Benjamin Sciortino; auto sales businessman N.A. Cates; construction executive Steven Robl; insurance agent Shannan Emond; aircraft delivery general manager Sarah Grosvenor; president of aircraft delivery Andre Grosvenor; chief financial officer Janet Cervantes-Hageman; insurance agent Courtney Rohrbaugh; towing businessman Arlin Roat; towing businessman Mark Ysidro; and accountant Andrea Gerringer.

Longwell also received an in-kind donation of $500 from businessman Doug Fry for campaign office space in this reporting period.

Treasurer: Mike Kuckelman

Sam Williams

Williams, 63, retired as an executive at Sullivan, Higdon & Sink – the state’s largest marketing firm – last June to run for mayor. Originally from Anchorage, Alaska, Williams moved to Wichita from Salt Lake City in 1989 with his wife and six kids.

Overall fundraising total: $186,127 ($60,000 total in self loans)

Total raised this period: $96,048 ($50,000 in self loans)

Cash on hand: $27,945

Largest contributors: Among those who have contributed a total of $1,000 each to the campaign since it began: retiree Jerry Aaron; equipment sales executive Fred Berry and Suzanne Berry; equipment sales executive Walter Berry and Polly Berry; energy executive C. Robert Buford and Martha Buford.

Real estate developer Jack Deboer; investor Tom Devlin; self-employed businessman Larry Fleming; marketer Bill Gardner; homemaker Deb Grimes; oil and gas business owner Willis “Wink” Hartman; Intrust Bank banker J.V. Lentell.

Food and beverage business executive Hal and Nancy McCoy; Cessna chairman emeritus Russ Meyer and Helen Meyer; advertising businessman Rand Mikulecky; banker M.D. Michaelis and Dee Michaelis; Envision CEO Michael Monteferrante and Teri Monteferrante; Yingling Aviation CEO Lynn Nichols.

Accountant Bill Pickert; Wichita Wingnuts co-owner Nathan Robertson; attorney Harvey Sorensen; owner and CEO of Lubrication Engineers and vice president and investor in Alpha BioSystems Scott Schwindaman and Janet Schwindaman; investor Robert Ruud.

Oil and property management owners Johnny and Marjorie Stevens; oil and property management financial manager Sandra Stevens; retirees Daniel Taylor and Kathleen Taylor; speech pathologist Amy Williams; physician Jason Williams; physician assistant Lucas Williams.

These people have contributed $500 each since Feb. 20: Emprise Bank president Thomas Page; aerospace executive Don Zerbe and Janice Zerbe; construction executive Chuck Grier and Susan Grier; real estate businessman Stephen Clark II; real estate businesswoman Christi Royse; attorney William Wood II; Sullivan, Higdon & Sink retiree Al Higdon and Judy Higdon; developer Steve Barrett; Susan Mikulecky.

Attorney Pamela Clancy Ammar; Kristin Robertson; retiree Brenda Farha; attorney Stan Andeel and Gretchen Andeel; advertising executive James Glenn; geologist/energy executive John Roger McCoy; lawyer Dick Honeyman; physician Jake Arnett; attorney Bill Oliver and Mary Lynn Oliver; construction businessman Jim and Tammy Foulston; construction businessman Tala and Carolyn Timsah.

Kansas Insurance Commissioner Ken Selzer; engineer Jeffrey Pearce; Sasnak restaurant management president Jon Rolph; physician assistant Lucas Williams; Koch Industries subsidiary Flint Hills Resources president and CEO Bradley Razook; advertising chief financial officer James Upson; Intrust Bank vice chairman Rick Beach; Genesis Health Clubs personal training director Preston Petersen; and health and fitness professional Richard Thompson.

Williams also received an in-kind donation of $147 from W. Gayle and J. Douglas Malone for postage.

Treasurer: Albert Denny

This story was originally published March 30, 2015 at 5:20 PM with the headline "Mayoral candidates raise nearly $160,000 in past month."