The Ayala, Gomes And Newton Money Effort (And Oh, Those Absentee Ballots)

It’s imperative for State Senate candidates Ed Gomes and Ernie Newton to qualify for public financing. Gomes, the incumbent, and Newton, the endorsed Democrat, are playing fundraising catch-up against State Rep. Andres Ayala who already has $100K in his campaign account to spend for the Aug. 14 primary that will decide the next occupant of Connecticut’s 23rd Senatorial District. Both the Gomes and Newton camps report today they’re close to qualifying for public money.

On-line filing reports with the State Elections Enforcement Commission show Newton has submitted more than $10,000 in donations as of June 11 in his effort to reach the $15,000 threshold that triggers public financing. Newton says his treasurer will submit updated campaign paperwork reflecting figures closer to $15k. Campaign hands for Gomes report the campaign is very close to hitting $15k.

Ayala started early raising his money through an exploratory committee backed by the fundraising prowess of former Democratic Town Chair John Stafstrom.

Newton, who has been campaigning for his old State Senate seat for a year, tells OIB he’s confident he’ll qualify for public financing in plenty of time before the primary. He has a headquarters set up and teams of field operatives knocking on doors.

Gomes, who replaced Newton in the Senate in 2005, started late. He waited until the end of the legislative session in May before forming a candidate committee. Gomes does not like raising money, but must qualify for public money if he’s going to maintain his seat. But there are now signs the Gomes operation has kicked into a higher gear. Gomes, with a strong union background, will need a mighty ground operation that is the hallmark of union-backed primaries.

Candidates for State Senate must secure 300 contributions in donations of $100 or less from residents within the district. Once they’ve met that threshold (Gomes and Newton report they’ve done so), they can raise funds in the same dollar amounts outside the district to reach the magic number of $15,000 to receive a check from the state for about $91,000. The system is set up so candidates are beholden to no one. But the labor task of raising money is no layup. The Senate district covers about 70 percent of the city and a portion of western Stratford.

Another area of concern for the Gomes camp is the proliferation of absentee ballot applications circulating throughout the district. An OIB check of absentee ballot applications signed out at the Town Clerk’s office shows a preponderance of Newton and Ayala supporters. Each camp has signed out several hundred applications. If team Gomes cannot stay competitive with absentee ballots it places a premium on turning out Gomes’ voters to the polls in a primary that will be challenged to hit a 20 percent turnout, based on recent city voter performances.

Team Ayala already has the luxury of planning out the next six weeks. Gomes and Newton must anticipate the next six weeks assuming they’ll receive their public financing. No public dough and it’s likely sayonara.