In his campaign to return to Congress, Dan Maffei has received nearly half his donations by named individuals—most of whom are donating more than $250 each.
At least 17 Syracuse University employees have donated $15,650 from 2011-12, according to campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. For example, Thomas Fondy, a biology professor at SU, has donated $4,000 to the Maffei campaign since September 2011.
“I support Dan Maffei because he knows the issues, but also because he would be a part of a Congress that could work with the executive branch and get something done,” said Fondy.
Maffei is running against U.S. Rep. Anne Marie Buerkle, R-Onondaga Hill, in an attempt to regain the congressional district seat he lost to her in 2010. Then the district was the 25th Congressional District. In 2012, it was redrawn and renamed the 24th Congressional District. Also running in the Nov. 6 election is Green Party candidate Ursula Rozum of Syracuse.
In 2008, Maffei became the first Democrat to win the then-25th Congressional District seat. But in 2010, he lost it by 648 votes to Buerkle. The newly drawn 24th Congressional District includes Cayuga, Onondaga and Wayne counties, and western Oswego County.
The Buerkle-Maffei rematch is one of the closest races in the United States. As of mid-September, Buerkle and Maffei were tied at 43 percent each of voters saying they would cast their ballot for either one, according to a Sept. 13 Siena Research Institute poll . The poll’s margin of error is 3.9 percent.
Typically, challengers are at a disadvantage when it comes to campaign fundraising because “an incumbent has so many resources,” said Elizabeth Sanders, a Cornell University political scientist.
But because Maffei was an elected official, people know his name and are more inclined to donate to him than they would be to somebody they weren’t familiar with, Sanders said. And that makes this race even more intense.
Here are some highlights of Maffei’s campaign fundraising:
- Maffei has raised $1,844,743, according to the FEC reports.
- Of that, 48 percent of it has been contributions from named individuals, as opposed to political action committees, corporations or unions.
- He has spent $1,236,082 and has $756,868 on hand.
- Since Jan. 1, 2011, at least $17,250 has come to Maffei’s campaign from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. That’s near the maximum for a national party committee, which can only give up to $5,000 to a candidate or candidate committee for each election, according to the FEC.
- Between 2011 and 2012, the top donations from industries to the Maffei campaign include $92,000 from lawyers and law firms; $89,500 from the PACS of fellow Democrats; and $69,000 from building trade unions, according Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan group in Washington, D.C., that tracks political money.
- The top three contributors to the Maffei campaign are: $17,250 from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee; $11,500 from the law firm of Hiscock & Barclay; and $11,500 from AmeriPAC: The Fund for a Greater America, according to Center for Responsive Politics.
In the tight race, the Maffei campaign has been turning up the heat and bringing in some big names to campaign for Maffei. On Oct. 15, women’s rights activist Sandra Fluke came to Syracuse to help raise money for the campaign. On Oct. 19, President Bill Clinton spoke at a rally near the airport, praising Maffei for his policy-making skills and stance on strengthening the middle-class.
Maffei campaign manager Clay Schroers declined to comment on how these endorsements might affect fundraising.
Maffei’s fundraising is high because he’s in such a tight race, said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics. In 2010, the average House candidate that was elected raised $1.4 million, Krumholz said. That compares to Maffei’s $1,844,743 this time.
“Money absolutely matters, without a doubt,” Krumholz said. “It is a critical element of the calculus that determines who wins or loses.”
(Stephanie Bouvia is a senior newspaper journalism major.)
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