In the Home Stretch

    In the final days leading up to the election, the East Hampton Town Republican Committee and its top candidates had more than three times the amount to spend as the East Hampton Democrats, reporting $60,111 in their various campaign accounts on Oct. 24 compared to the Democrats’ $20,015.

    Between Oct. 4 and Oct. 24, the Democrats’ campaign committee, Campaign 2011, raised nearly $17,500 with the bulk of the money, $10,471, coming from individual donations. The largest infusion — $5,000 — came from the East Hampton Conservators, a political action committee that is endorsing the Democratic slate. The other top contributor was the Bistrian Cement Corporation of East Hampton, which gave $1,000. Campaign 2011 also received $500 from David Doty of Wainscott, the Conservators’ treasurer, Carey Lovelace and Judith Little of Amagansett, Jeremiah Mulligan of East Hampton, and Ted Sann of Sagaponack.

    Additional contributions came from Barbara Claflin of East Hampton, who gave $300, and Jacqueline Lowey, Ralph Ergas, and Robert Hoguet of East Hampton, Debra Marino of Amagansett, Rose Daniel of Manhattan, and Toni Ross of Wainscott, who each gave $250.

     The East Hampton Town Democratic Committee reported $2,850 in contributions, all from individual donations. The largest were from Harry Kamen of Wainscott and Edwina Von Gal of East Hampton, who gave $1,350 and $500 respectively.    

    While the East Hampton Town Republican Committee only raised approximately $5,200 in contributions during the filing period, Supervisor Bill Wilkinson’s personal committee, Wilkinson for Supervisor, raised nearly $27,000.

    The biggest contributions to the East Hampton Town Republican Committee came from Stanley Arkin of Amagansett, who gave $1,000, the Bistrian Gravel Corporation and Bistrian Cement Corporation, which each gave $1,000, and Reed Jones of East Hampton, chairman of the town planning board, who donated $400.

    Wilkinson for Supervisor had a closing balance of $37,799, raising $26,785 in contributions, with $19,185 donated from individuals and $7,600 from corporations.

    The largest individual contribution of $2,000 was given by the family of James Abernathy of East Hampton and New York, followed by $1,000 donations by Thomas Sennefelder and Julie Stavola, both of Montauk, Randy Altschuler of St. James, who narrowly lost his challenge to Representative Tim Bishop last year, and Sam Gershowitz of Southampton. Mr. Wilkinson’s committee received $1,000 contributions from the Bistrian Cement Corporation and the Star Island Yacht Club of Montauk.

    Additional $500 contributions came from Kathryn Ciccariello and Thomas Ciccariello, Kenneth Walles, and Joseph Bloecker, all of Montauk, and from Donald Schrage, Richard Haeg, and Marie Duryea of East Hampton, as well as Len Bernard of Amagansett.

    Additional corporate donations came from Marshall Prado and Sons, Gosman’s Restaurant and Bar, and Uihlein’s Marina and Boat Rental, all of Montauk, as well as Ryan Schmitter Production and Schmitter Mini-Max Inc., of East Hampton, and Mike DiSunno and Sons of Amagansett, all of which donated $500.

    Richard Haeg, Republican candidate for town board, raised $520 for his own political committee, Friends of Richard Haeg, but spent more than $3,000 on print and radio ads and $2,976 on campaign mailings, leaving him with a closing balance of $1,661.

    Steven Gaines, another Republican candidate for town board, raised $1,100 for his committee, Gaines for East Hampton, and spent $3,606 on print and radio ads, leaving him with a balance of $522.

    Wilkinson for Supervisor was responsible for the most significant contributions to the political committees of both Steven Gaines and Richard Haeg, giving each $500.

    As for reported expenditures, the Republicans outspent the Democrats between Oct. 4 and Oct. 24 by more than $7,300, dropping over $36,000 on various expenses. The Democrats spent $29,355.

    Wilkinson for Supervisor reported approximately $11,500 in spending, with nearly $10,500 going to print and radio advertisement as well as campaign literature.

    The remaining expenses were contributions to other Republican candidates including Suffolk County Legislature hopeful Cornelius Kelly, who received a $100 donation.

    The East Hampton Town Republican Committee reported $15,535 in spending, with about $10,800 going to print and radio advertising as well as campaign literature. There were also three refunded contributions to Philip White of Bridgehampton, Doreen DiSunno of East Hampton, and Lisa R. Rana of Amagansett, Republican incumbent town justice, totaling $1,300.

    Campaign 2011 laid out an impressive $28,328 in those three weeks, with more than $14,000 spent on print and radio advertising and an additional $13,000 used on postage.

    The Democratic candidates, including Zach Cohen for supervisor, Sylvia Overby and Peter Van Scoyoc for town board, and Stephen Grossman for town justice, did not set up their own campaign committees.

    Lisa R. Rana, Republican incumbent town justice, did not file reports for this cycle.

    While the East Hampton Independence Party and Independence town board candidate Bill Mott did not file for this cycle, Marilyn Behan, the other Independene town board candidate, did. She raised $3,600, $2,850 of which was given by individuals.

    Major contributors included Maureen Murphy and David Yudelson of Montauk, who gave $1,000 and $500 respectively, and Ali Wojtusiak and Josephine Wojtusiak, who each gave $200.

    Ms. Behan’s committee also received $700 in corporate donations from two Montauk businesses, $500 from Uihlein’s Marina and $200 donation from Montauket Hotel Inc.

    Lastly, the East Hampton Conservators raised $6,160 in the first three weeks of October, but focused the majority of their efforts on mailings designed to raise awareness of local environmental issues.

    The environmental PAC received $1,000 donations from Jonathan Rose of Amagansett and Peter Morton of Los Angeles, as well as $500 contributions from Sheldon Harnick of East Hampton and Michael Longacre of Sagaponack.

    In addition to their $5,000 donation to Campaign 2011, the East Hampton Conservators spent $5,655 with Mullen and McCaffrey, an advertising and public relations firm in East Hampton.

    The Conservators also spent $2,440 on voter registration reminders, mailings, and other print materials to spread the word on the PAC’s most pressing environmental concerns such as beach privatization, increased housing densities, and the suburbanization of East Hampton.

    For those who want to keep a close eye on the campaign finances as the election grows near, voters should know that any donation which exceeds $1,000 must be reported within 24 hours of receipt, meaning that citizens can check up on any late-breaking contributions that may have come in after the filing date of Oct. 24 and up to Election Day. Financial disclosure information can be found on the New York State Board of Elections Web site at elections.state.ny. us/DisclosureReports.