Wilkinson Tops Commission Race Spending He’S Raised Nearly $42,000; His Gop Challenger, Sprague, Less Than $1,000; Roskelley, $14,000

Republican Karl Wilkinson has already spent more money on his run for a seat on the Spokane County Commission than incumbent Democrat John Roskelley has raised, campaign finance records show.

Wilkinson, who has collected nearly $42,000 in the past four months, has paid more than $18,700 in expenses, according to the latest filings at the county elections office.

“It’s incredible. It costs so much to run a campaign,” said Wilkinson, who called the expense distasteful but necessary.

By comparison, Roskelley has collected just more than $14,000 in donations. He is finishing his first full term in the District 1 seat.

Republican Bill Sprague, who will challenge Wilkinson in the Sept. 19 primary, has raised less than $1,000.

Wilkinson said he plans to spend a lot more in an attempt to gain name recognition.

“The incumbent always has an edge because they’re so well-known,” said Wilkinson, already looking ahead to November’s general election. “John already has the name recognition. My job is to get people to know who I am so they know if I’m a viable choice or not.”

He continues to be the choice of many in the business and development community.

The Spokane Home Builders Association, which gave Wilkinson $5,000 earlier this year, bought him more than $5,000 in campaign signs last month, records show.

He also picked up a $1,000 donation from the Washington Association of Realtors and $500 each from Vandervert Construction and W. Main Corp.

Wilkinson has said repeatedly he won’t be beholden to development interests despite their heavy support of his bid to unseat Roskelley.

He said most of the business people and developers who have given him money, including millionaire entrepreneur Bernard Daines, want what’s best for the county: growth, jobs and prosperity.

“I’d hate to be the candidate that didn’t get their support,” Wilkinson said. “At the same time, I got $5 from a retired gal I know. That is of greater personal value to me than the $5,000 contribution I got.”

Roskelley is getting some help from residents outside Spokane.

His largest contribution so far - $2,000 - came from Bill Pope, a retired Microsoft executive from Seattle. A Chicago man, Terry Diamond, has given Roskelley $1,000.

Roskelley, a world-class mountaineer, said Wednesday he guided the two men on a recent Himalayan excursion. He said he also has worked with Pope on salmon-recovery issues.

“I’m gaining a little support from people in the salmon-recovery effort,” said Roskelley, who sits on the governor’s Salmon Recovery Funding Board.

He also has received $1,000 from Spokane car dealer Chris Marr and his wife, Christine, and $500 each from Christine Wynecoop of Spokane, Paul J. Dormitor of Spokane, Gilbert Smith of Colbert, and Elizabeth Cocchiarella of Liberty Lake.

The Greenstone Corp., a development firm headed by Jim Frank of Liberty Lake, also has contributed $500 to Roskelley’s campaign.

“There seems to be a lot of individuals coming out with $50 or $100 donations as well,” Roskelley said.

So far, Roskelley has spent a little more than $50.

“I still have all my old signs from the last campaign. They work great,” he said. “But I still need to do some advertising, so I’ll have to start spending, too.”

In the race for the District 2 commissioner seat, incumbent Republican Kate McCaslin has raised more than $19,000, according to the latest reports.

That includes a $500 donation from the Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corp. and a $1,500 in-kind contribution from Hamilton Photography for campaign photographs, election records show.

Republican Tom Evans, who declared his intention to challenge McCaslin in the primary, has reported no contributions. Neither has Democrat Bill Burke, who declared his candidacy for the seat in April.