As we look forward to the elections season this year, it is obvious that big money is flexing its muscle. In the presidential race, Romney (or “R.money”) has simply buried his opponents with his huge war chest and all the negative campaigning that large money permits – the ads, the robo-calls, the opinion research and push polls.
Well, get ready Alachua County. The Republican Party is gonna be trying to buy seats on the County Commission. Even though the qualifying period for candidates isn’t until early June, they have their high-funded candidates picked out. and they are piling up the money.
In District One, Mike Byerly’s seat, Brandon C. Kutner already has $11,000. In District Three, which pro-science environmentalist Robert Hutchinson will be running for, the
R’s have Jean Calderwood with $13,000. And then in District Five, local developer’s son Dean Cheshire already has $25,000!
And this is before the April 10 reporting period information comes in; all this money came in before February. The Supervisor of Elections site is very handy to follow the money.
That is not to say the Dems won’t raise some serious money, but from where and what increments is significant to study.
There will be primary elections to thin the field down on Aug. 14. The main election is, of course, Nov. 6.
It is not too early to volunteer and get the word out about the good candidates. We’d suggest in Alachua County support for Byerly, Hutch and Chestnut.
One other candidate needs a mention. Maryhelen Wheeler will (as of now) face Clovis Watson in a Democratic Party primary on Aug. 14 for the District 20 Florida House of Representatives seat. She is a newcomer to electoral politics, but a woman of great experience in education issues, trying to get things done in Tallahassee as an advocate for our schools. Watson has a record of questionable conduct from his time in the City of Alachua as City Manager, and at one point renounced the Democrats and very publicly joined the Republican Party. Now, supposedly, he is back to being a Democrat. Please support Wheeler. Again, the supervisor of election’s site has contact info for the candidates. If you’ve got time, do what you can.
