One of the most famous political maxims is “All politics is local.” The phrase is most closely attributed to former Speaker of the House Tip O’ Neill, who first used it in 1935 when he was seeking his initial elected office.
Now, 80 years late, the new maxim could be “All politics is money.” In 2012, more than $7 billion was spent in the presidential election, according to the Federal Election Commission. According to Politico, the FEC estimates that candidates spent about $3.2 billion of the total $7 billion, parties spent another $2 billion and other outside political committees made up more than $2.1 billion
While those seeking office in Fayette spend nowhere near that amount, a check of funds spent during the September special election for the District 5 Fayette County Commission seat, shows that while money may cannot buy happiness, it can sure propel your political career.
Democrat Charles Rousseau won the seat with 2,268 votes, and Republican Angela Bean finished second with 650 votes, while Republican and seldom-seen candidate Peyton Riley tallied 312 votes.
In looking at required campaign contribution forms, Rousseau out-raised and outspent his fellow candidates by large margins in the District 5 voting to replace Pota Coston, who died in July.
The Democrat received $16,235 in contributions, and spent just under $8,000 to win the race. Contributors included the Virgil Fludd Election Committee with $1,000, Halbert Development for $1,000, Jim Pace for $1,000 and Wayne Kendall for $1,000. His largest contributor was Ron Mabra who contributed $2,500. More than $3,500 of Rousseau’s contributions came from out of the county.
Fludd, of Tyrone, and Mabra, of Fayetteville, are Democrat state representatives for Georgia General Assembly districts that include slices of Fayette County.
Wayne Kendall is a Fayetteville attorney who was associated with the so-far successful NAACP district voting lawsuit.
Halbert Development’s principal Rick Halbert and Group VI principal Jim Pace are builder/developers associated with constructing the Pinewood Atlanta Studios in Fayetteville.
By comparison, second place finisher Bean raised $3536.25 and spent $3225.85. Bean’s contributors included former Fayette Board of Education member Mary Kay Bacallao with $300 and state Senator Marty Harbin with $500. There were no out of county contributions reported.
The final candidate, Riley, filled out an affidavit with the state indicating that he would not accept during the election cycle a combined total of contributions exceeding $2,500 for the campaign nor make a combined total of expenditures exceeding $2,500. No contributions were listed for Riley.
When the figures are broken down, Rousseau spent just over $3.50 a vote, while Bean spent close to $5 a vote.
In less than a month, voters head to the polls for municipal elections. The Citizen will keep you updated on what it costs to win and how much votes are worth in city elections.
