Waldo Spent A Lot In Losing Effort He Paid More Per Vote Than Any Candidate In Primary

Jim Waldo billed himself as the candidate for shrewd businessmen, but his bid for governor proved to be the worst investment in the state Tuesday.

Nobody paid as much for votes as the Tacoma man, who spent $15.66 - on everything from TV spots to road signs - for each vote he grabbed in the crowded primary race.

Waldo, who wooed campaign cash out of businessmen across the state, spent almost $700,000 for 5 percent of the vote and an embarrassing seventh-place finish.

By comparison, Gary Locke spent $3.92 for each of his votes to win the Democratic nomination for governor.

Waldo’s campaign chairman, Scott Hopper, had a variety of explanations for his candidate’s crash landing:

It was the Republican’s first run for office. Turnout was low. The field was overcrowded …

But had Hopper calculated what the Waldo campaign spent per vote?

“I know,” he said. “It’s ugly.”

Cathy Allen, a Democratic campaign consultant in Seattle, summed it up this way: “He just never caught on. Near the end, his money became insignificant, which is the most tragic thing you can say about any candidate.”

While the governor’s primary guzzled about $5 million, other statewide races were low-budget affairs where votes came cheap.

Many incumbent office-holders received 55 percent to 60 percent of the votes without spending more than pocket change.

Lands Commissioner Jennifer Belcher spent 16 cents a vote. Attorney General Christine Gregoire spent 11 cents. And Auditor Brian Sonntag spent just 3 cents for each of his 400,000 votes.

Obscure candidates with catchy names received perhaps the best return on their campaign investments.

Bambi Litchman got six votes for every buck she spent in her $4,300 bid for the lieutenant governor’s job.

Mike The Mover got 50 votes for every dollar in the auditor’s race, his eighth straight failed run for a state office.

Of the nine statewide races, the auditor’s race was the cheapest primary. Votes went for pennies.

The governor’s race was by far the priciest. Votes went for about $6.

Dale Foreman spent $8.43 a vote. Long-shot Pam Roach paid $9.35 for each of hers. Norm Maleng spent $9.23 a vote.

Another big spender was Ron Taber, who dumped $400,000 of his own cash to become one of two finalists for superintendent of public instruction.

The campaign cost Taber $3.88 a vote, five times what it cost his opponent Terry Bergeson to grab twice as many votes.

Consultant Allen, who’s working for Bergeson, had this to say about Taber: “He’s a serious fool.”

At least he made the Nov. 5 general election.

Waldo finished fourth among Republicans, seventh overall, and paid four times what Taber paid for votes.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo