After several years of financial struggles and fractured leadership, the Onondaga County Republican Committee is staking a claim on a better future.
That’s thanks to new leadership, a united political front and a large contribution by a single donor, according to local GOP officials, political scientists and state campaign finance records.
A fractured party and ineffective leadership were likely a large part of the local committee’s problems, said Grant Reeher, a political scientist at Syracuse University. “That’s going to turn away likely donors and voters,” he said. The recent recession likely did not play a large part in the committee’s struggles, he added.
“People want to give to something that’s viable and vibrant, so that they feel they are making a good investment with their contribution,” he said. “Local politics is a very important piece of our political life and people in politics recognize that.”
Now the committee is looking to reverse the steady decline of registered Republican voters in Onondaga County and kick-start fundraising to support local candidates. Part of that plan is presenting strong candidates for local elections, said committee chairman Tom Dadey, who was elected in September 2010.
“We’ve made tremendous strides since I’ve been elected,” he said. “It’s no secret that we’re down 13,000 to 14,000 registered voters in Onondaga County. But we’re building the Republican party back as a strong organization.”
Despite the falling voter rolls, Republican candidates have won several high-profile local offices in recent years. Joanie Mahoney has been the county executive since 2007. She succeeded fellow Republican Nick Pirro, who had been county executive since 1987. Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick is seeking his sixth four-year term and Bob Antonacci became the county’s comptroller in 2007. And last fall, Ann-Marie Buerkle upset freshman Rep. Dan Maffei, D-DeWitt, for the 25th Congressional District. The district includes Onondaga County, which went for Maffei while Buerkle won with support in Madison County.
“I think the voters realize the Republican candidates here offer a very good message,” said Dadey.
Last September, Dadey was elected over three other candidates in a tightly contested election among Republican committee members. His election ousted two-term incumbent John C. DeSpirito III, who had been party chairman since 2007.
One of the men who ran against Dadey is Leonard Manfrates Jr, a 30-year veteran of local Republican politics. After losing the election, Manfrates decided to continue as one of the committee’s three vice-chairmen. He praises Dadey for what Manfrates sees as positive change.
“Tom has done a great job. He’s unified the party. He’s turned around the finances and he’s worked really hard to bring new candidates to the voters,” Manfrates said.
A key difference between the Dadey and DeSpirito has been their management style, said Manfrates. “Tom has brought a more professional style to the office. There’s much more communication and delegating. John wasn’t such a big delegator,” he said.
DeSprito did not respond to several interview requests for this story.
Now the committee is financially healthier than it was just 10 months ago. Then the committee was $14.52 in debt, according to its July 2010 filing with the New York State Board of Elections. It also had not deposited a single contribution in that account since January 2010. Instead, it had $1,547 in its housekeeping account, which is used for paying its office rent and other housekeeping expenses.
In comparison, the Onondaga County Democratic Committee had $13,359 in its account at that time.
Over the past two years, the committee had relied on bank loans and several large donations to stay out of debt. All of the loans came from Solvay Bank, according to state campaign finance records.
Those three loans totaled over $27,000. The first was for $10,000 in February 2009. The second loan was for $7,500 in December 2009 and the final loan was for $10,000 in September 2010. All three loans have been repaid. The most recent payment was in December 2010.
Now, the committee had $10,643 on hand, according to its first 2011 filing with the state Board of Elections
For its healthier bank account, the committee can thank Karen Fisher, of Camillus, the wife of the county’s deputy executive, William Fisher. In October 2010, Karen Fisher wrote the committee a $10,000 check.
She declined to discuss the contribution. “I’m not even a Republican. I don’t mean to be rude, but I have no comment,” she said when reached by phone at her home.
For the Onondaga County Republican Committee, new chairman Dadey expresses optimism about his party’s future and its finances. He points to his experience raising money during his 2004 run for state senate. During that run, he raised over $250,000.
“I have a background in fundraising. I’m calling people, former donors and telling them why they should donate to the committee,” said Dadey. “For me, I have no intention of ever borrowing money again. Ever.”
(Stephen Hughes is a graduate student in magazine, newspaper and online journalism.)
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