BUFFALO (WBEN) - There are roughly five months until the November election, and as both mayoral candidates held rallies this week with numerous supporters, what about that all-important financial support?
India Walton announced Tuesday that her campaign received $40,000 in donations from roughly 600 donors in the 24 hours following Mayor Byron Brown's write-in campaign announcement.
Because Walton defeated Brown in the Democratic primary, she now has a clear advantage in that her name will be on the ballot, while Brown's name will not.
"I think that's going to require more in the way of ad dollars; it's going to require more in the way of mailers, door-hangers, and all those kinds of things that are associated with campaigns," said Jacob Neiheisel, professor of political science at UB. "None of that is cheap, and (Brown) going to have to spend money to make this a viable race. He is going to have to outspend (Walton) - there's no question about that."
Former Erie County Democratic Chairman Len Lenihan pointed to one distinct advantage Brown possesses over Walton. Even though his name won't be on the ballot in November, Lenihan argued that he may not necessarily have to go crazy in campaign spending.
"You have to keep in mind that the mayor starts off with one huge advantage, and that is that he's been there 16 years, and everyone in the city knows his name," said Lenihan. "He's running against somebody who is certainly lesser known and has never been in office before, so the money that the mayor is going to need, frankly, is not all that more significant. Certainly, he's going to have to advertise to inform people how to write his name in, but again, it's a name that everybody knows."
Ken Kruly is a blogger for politicsandstuff.com, and he explained that Walton raised less than one-third of the amount Brown raised leading up to the primary, but she obviously was victorious regardless of the disparity.
Without knowing how her campaign will operate in the months leading up to the general election, Kruly wonders if Walton will keep the one-third ratio as a rule of thumb going forward.
"I don't really think she needs to raise the same amount of money that the mayor needs to," he said.
However, Lenihan believes the Walton campaign should be focused on raising as much money as possible, again going back to the advantage Brown has as a multi-term incumbent.
"If I was advising that campaign, I would say raise as much money as you possibly can because you're going to be up against somebody who can raise significantly more being the incumbent mayor who has been in office for 16 years," said Lenihan.
Because this race has received significant national attention due to Walton identifying as a Democratic Socialist, some believe she could have the benefit of more donations from outside Western New York. Walton stated Tuesday that she's received mostly small donations from all over the country.
Kruly expects that Brown's campaign will raise and spend well over $1 million when all is said and done.
To keep updated on the contributions made to each campaign, use this tool on the New York State Board of Elections page. Keep in mind that the latest figures are as of June 7, and therefore would not accurately reflect the current numbers.
