Summit County Executive and Democrat Ilene Shapiro raised $265,000 in her bid to hold onto the county’s top office.
The amount dwarfed that of her Republican opponent Bill Roemer, who raised $17,060 in the latest reporting period, according to campaign finance reports filed Thursday in advance of the Nov. 8 election.
The period covers activity through Oct. 19.
Shapiro was appointed to the position in August after former County Executive Russ Pry died, so she was able to raise a ton of cash in a short period of time.
She carried over only $4,590 from the previous reporting period.
Her single largest donation came from the Friends of Pry committee, which contributed $50,000.
His committee also provided more than $20,300 in in-kind contributions for advertising, office space and other campaign services.
Shapiro, who was serving as County Council president before the appointment and was a retired business executive, reported spending $194,781 so far in the race. She had $74,809 still available.
Meanwhile, the Committee to Elect Roemer reported spending nothing and having $20,345 on hand. His single largest donation was $5,000 from the county Republican Central Committee.
Roemer, a retired executive and certified public accountant, said he personally spent about $4,700 so far and will be reimbursed by the committee.
Shapiro’s 91-page report shows her contributions came from a variety of sources, ranging from individuals to fellow politicians to companies to unions.
Among them were: $5,000 from the Realtors Political Action Committee in Columbus, $5,000 from the Medical Mutual of Ohio PAC in Cleveland, $2,500 from U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Niles, and $2,500 from the KeyCorp Advocates Fund in Cleveland.
She also picked up $5,925 in contributions from her employees at the county.
The report shows Shapiro gave $65,105 to the Summit County Democratic Party. She couldn’t be reached for comment.
Roemer criticized Shapiro for accepting contributions from employees — a common practice in the county that he pledged not to follow — and for buying campaign services and products through Akron Specialty Advertising Products, which she co-owns.
“I’m very concerned relative to the amount of money my opponent raised from companies that do business with Summit County,” he added.
Spending in the county executive’s race likely will match or surpass the amount spent four years ago, when Pry took on former Munroe Falls Mayor Frank Larson.
Pry spent $219,771 in the months leading up to the election, while Larson spent $17,768.
Stephen Brooks, associate director of the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron, said there are two main reasons that spending would increase.
For starters, local elections are about name recognition — and Shapiro needs to educate voters. She also received that large donation from Pry’s committee.
“If you have the money, you spend it,” Brooks said.
Prosecutor
County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh, a Democrat, reported raising $17,725 and having $78,358 still available. She spent $25,831.
John Chapman, her Republican opponent, said in an email to the Beacon Journal that he had raised $420 and spent $11,706. He loaned his committee $12,000.
Fiscal officer
County Fiscal Officer Kristen Scalise, a Democrat, reported raising $17,750 and having $52,853 on hand.
She spent $63,302.
Her Republican opponent Jeff Iula reported receiving no contributions.
He spent $210 and has $759 available.
Clerk of courts
County Clerk of Courts Sandra Kurt, a Democrat who was appointed to the post after Dan Horrigan won election as Akron mayor last year, filed a report saying her committee raised an astounding $478,103. The amount, though, was an error — and Kurt said her campaign would file an amended report on Monday.
“It’s not nearly so impressive,” she said with a laugh about the amount.
She said she raised $42,045 and had $6,440 still on hand.
She reported $36,325 in expenses.
Ann Marie O’Brien, her Republican opponent seized on the mistake.
“If Ms. Kurt is unable to accurately complete a simple campaign finance report, how can she be expected to appropriately supervise the multimillion dollar Clerk of Courts operations?” she asked.
O’Brien reported $11,560 in contributions and $7,108 in expenses. She still had $6,331 on hand.
The Friends of Sandra Kurt also reported receiving $24,600 in in-kind contributions from the Ohio Democratic Party for mailings.
O’Brien for Clerk of Courts reported a $2,500 contribution from the Summit County Republican Central Committee State Fund.
Uncontested races
Sheriff Steve Barry and Engineer Al Brubaker, both Democrats, are unopposed in the election.
But both continued to raise money.
Barry reported raising $52,070 and spending $51,094. He still had $30,919 available.
Brubaker reported receiving $6,700 in contributions and spending $11,079. He still had $64,626 on hand.
Friends of Pry
There had been plenty of speculation about what would happen to the campaign kitty accumulated by Pry. The Friends of Pry had $313,584 available during the reporting period.
The committee reported $172,864 in expenses and still had $140,720 on hand.
Pry had asked Shapiro before he passed to run in his place. His committee was generous with her campaign, providing the $50,000 on Aug. 15 and the in-kind contributions.
The committee also gave $40,000 to the Summit County Democratic Party Judicial Fund; $10,000 each to County Council Democratic candidates Elizabeth Walters and Clair Dickinson; and $10,000 to Kurt.
Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com.