Contributions, voter turnout drive election

Kootenai County Commission Chairman Dick Panabaker said the reason he got beat in May’s Republican primary is money.

And painfully low voter turnout didn’t help either, he said.

Panabaker, who has served on the commission for 10 years, lost by 441 votes to Katie Brodie who raised a record $26,380 for the race. That’s nearly five times more than Panabaker, according to the most recent information from the Kootenai County Elections Department. Brodie is a former Kootenai County Planning Commission chairwoman and assistant for the local job recruiting agency Jobs Plus. She takes office in January.

“When you got TV and billboards, there’s a lot of new people in this area that didn’t know me, so sure it was going to make a difference,” Panabaker said.

Candidates for both county and state legislative races had until 5 p.m. Thursday to turn in sunshine reports showing how much money they raised and spent between May 10 and June 4. The primary was May 25.

Brodie’s war chest was also larger than the two other Republicans in the race. Former Kootenai County assessor Rich Piazza raised $5,185, while Mike Piper, who leads several conservation groups and didn’t solicit campaign cash, raised about $1,300, according to his most recent campaign finance report filed shortly before the May primary election.

Brodie raised more money than any candidate ever has in a county primary race. Because there were no Democrats or third party candidates vying for the office, which means no November general election, Brodie said she had to push hard to raise money.

“When you’re a new kid on the block and have absolutely no name ID, it’s the only way I know to get it,” Brodie said. “I had to advertise like mad.”

Former Kootenai County Commissioner Dick Compton, who is now a state senator, holds the record for the most cash raised and spent in a campaign for a county office, but that included the general election. In that 1994 race, Compton raised $39,810.

For this 30-day post primary report, Brodie raised $1,840 and spent $3,558 mostly on advertising.

The cash came from 11 individuals contributing more than $100 each including $100 donations from former Fernan Village Mayor Pat Acuff, Courtesy Communications owner John Sonneland of Spokane and Sandy Patano, Idaho Sen. Larry’s Craig’s state director. North Idaho Building’s Political Action Committee also gave $100, while Coeur d’Alene Mines Chairman Dennis Wheeler donated $200.

Panabaker blames part of his defeat on the low 24 percent voter turnout. County election officials were predicting a 40 percent voter turnout because so many people – 2,252 residents – voted absentee. But people didn’t show up to the polls.

Money didn’t make the difference in Commissioner Rick Currie’s re-election. Currie raised nearly $4,000 in the period leading up to the primary election, compared with challenger Claudia Brennan’s war chest of $13,550.

And cash didn’t always make the difference in the legislative races.

Rep. Wayne Meyer, R-Rathdrum, lost even though he raised about $4,600 more than his challenger, Phil Hart. Meyer raised $21,317, most of which came from political action committees and Idaho businesses. Hart raised $16,700 but $9,349 of it was his own money.

In the other District 3 races, which include Hayden, Rathdrum and Spirit Lake, Rep. Jim Clark, R-Hayden, raised $10,743. That’s compared to the nearly $8,000 raised by challenger Jeri DeLange, a Hayden City Councilwoman, who lost by 965 votes.

Sen. Kent Bailey, R-Hayden, lost to Mike Jorgenson, who raised $26,423, including $12,958 in personal loans. Bailey raised $12,620, while former Sen. Clyde Boatright reported $10,781, according to reports posted on the Idaho Secretary of State’s Web site.

In District 4, which includes downtown Coeur d’Alene, Jim Hollingsworth raised $6,502, including an $800 personal loan. Republican Marge Chadderdon pulled in $16,893.

Chadderdon now is facing Democrat Mike Gridley, the Coeur d’Alene city attorney, who has raised $12,457. Gridley beat incumbent Democrat lawmaker Bonnie Douglas, whose campaign finance report lists $1,645 in contributions.

In Post Falls’ District 5, Republican Bob Nonini beat challenger Ron Vieselmeyer by 119 votes. Although the race was close, the fundraising had a wide gap. Nonini raised $33,775 to Vieselmeyer’s $7,665.

In District 5, Seat B, Charles Eberle lost by 99 votes to Frank Henderson, who raised $10,139, which is more than three times that of Eberle. The race is now between Henderson and Democrat Lyndon Harriman, whose most recent campaign finance report lists total contributions of $180.