3 NH Congressional Winners Spent Less Than Their Opponents
By Daniel Remin
WASHINGTON — All three New Hampshire winners of last year’s election to Congress received and spent less money than their opponents.
In the closest election of the three, Sen. John E. Sununu, R-N.H., raised about $3.73 million and spent more than $3.67 million, far less than former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen, who raised and spent approximately $5.8 million, according to the Center for Responsive Politics (at opensecrets.org).
Rep. Jeb Bradley, R-N.H., raised $1.01 million and spent about $983,450, while his opponent, Martha Fuller Clark, raised and spent more than $3.5 million. Rep. Charlie Bass, R-N.H., raised $906,760 and spent $886,700 in his reelection campaign; his challenger, Katrina Swett, raised and spent more than $1.4 million.
“It’s been that way every single election I’ve run except for one,” Bass said in an interview. “The moral: money doesn’t buy elections. Votes win elections. Candidates discover this year after year after year. It’s what you believe in and how effectively you communicate your message.”
Bass said the new campaign finance law that went into effect the day after last November’s elections and bans federally unregulated “soft money” would not change his next campaign’s fund-raising strategy. “I never raised or spent any soft money,” he said. “I’m simply going about the business of organizing my campaign two years from now just as I always did.
“On the national level, I think that it’ll reduce the ability of the national campaign committees, both Republican and Democrat, to have a big presence in a particular campaign, to spend a million dollars, for example, on media on a candidate or an incumbent who’s in trouble.”
Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., who was not up for reelection, received $277,763 during the 2001-02 election cycle, according to Political Money Line.
The money raised by all four current members of the New Hampshire delegation came from a variety of individuals and PACs (political action committees). According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Sununu received more than $1.5 million from PACs in 2001-02, the most of anyone in the New Hampshire delegation.
Verizon Communications, through its two PACs, was one of the largest contributors. In 2001-2002, it gave $2,500 to Gregg, and $10,000 to Bass and $10,000 to Bradley, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
PACs can contribute a maximum of $10,000 per election cycle. However, individual contributions also came from Verizon employees. Bass, for example, received $2,000 from Verizon employees, and Bradley received $500.
“The way we decide to give to particular candidates is that we always support candidates that support progressive telecommunications policies that are pro-competition and pro-consumer,” Susan Butta, a Verizon spokesman, said in an interview.
The PAC of SBC Communications, another Baby Bell, contributed $9,000 to Bass and $3,000 to Bradley, according to the CRP. “We generally support those members that have a basic understanding of our industry and have like-minded feelings towards what our industry needs, which is less regulation,” Barry Hutchison, an SBC spokesman, said in an interview. “Charlie Bass and others, they certainly have those beliefs.”
Bass serves on the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. But he and Hutchison said that was not why SBC contributed to the campaign.
“They support me, I’m assuming, because I do a good job representing New Hampshire,” Bass said. “It’s important to remember what comes first. Voting record comes first. I have certain beliefs and so forth; if these entities agree with me, they make contributions. There is no quid pro quo or anything like that.”
BAE North America’s PAC was Bass’ largest contributor. The defense contractor gave the maximum $10,000 to Bass, who also received $4,652 from BAE employees, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
The PAC gave $5,000 to Bradley.
New Hampshire is such a jurisdiction, and its two House members back a strong national defense, Measell said.
Like Bass, Bradley said he was looking to raise just the “hard money” that is regulated by the Federal Election Commission.
The freshman lawmaker received loans for his election campaign that he is working to pay back. The FEC reports that Bradley accepted $309,000 in personal loans and that his campaign is approximately $33,000 in debt.
The FEC report indicates that Bradley had close to $27,800 in cash after the election, a sum he plans to increase. “We’re building that up,” he said. “We had (a fundraising) event down here in Washington. I think that was pretty successful, so that’s the kind of thing we’ll continue to do. I look to have ample resources to run a strong re-election effort.”
Gregg, the Granite State’s veteran senator, spent approximately $350,700 in the last election cycle, according to Political Money Line, and had $368,391 cash on hand at the end of last year. He is up for reelection next year.
Gregg chairs both the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State and the Judiciary. He is a member of the Budget Committee.
The National Association of Broadcasters PAC contributed $9,999 to Gregg in 2001-2002, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
All members of Congress’ personal financial disclosures are due on May 15.
(Daniel Remin is an intern with the Boston University Washington News Service.)
Published in The Manchester Union Leader, in New Hampshire.
