The more money a candidate spends on their campaign does not necessarily translate into being elected, at least that’s what the disclosure statements from the last municipal election reveal.
Comparing what each mayoral candidate received from outside contributions, and ultimately how much they spent on their campaigns, results ended up in reverse order with relation to their final expenses.
Current mayor Ivan Brooker received $5,700 in contributions and pitched in $1,951.98 of his own money, spending a total of $7,651.98 on his eventual winning campaign.
Brooker’s main contributor was LaVita Land, a developer responsible for Cochrane communities like Fireside and the Willows of River Heights, giving $2,000. Also funding Brooker were Springwood Developments ($500), MD Landscaping ($500) and the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), which gave $1,000.
Joann Churchill spent $10,945.83 on her unsuccessful mayoral campaign.
Breaking that down, Churchill received $8,399 in contributions and spent $2,546.83 of her own money.
LaVita Land and Brookfield Residential (a Calgary developer) each donated $2,000, UrbanStar (Windy Ridge and Glendale Manor developer) gave $1,000 and Spray Lake Sawmills chipped in $750.
David Smith spent the most of any candidate, ringing in $14,660 for his bid to become mayor.
A total of $9,919 came from contributions with the remaining $4,750 from his personal expenses.
Green Drop, a Calgary lawn and tree care company, contributed $5,000 to Smith’s campaign, while Pro Rig Consulting gave $1,000 and Cochrane Toyota owner Alex Baum provided $300.
Campaign spending on the councillors’ side was more modest.
Dan Cunin received the highest amount of contributions of any council candidate, getting $4,965 ($3,465 from the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) committee on political action, an additional $500 from AUPE Local 006 and $1,000 from the IAFF).
Cunin did not spend any personal money on his campaign, and had $395 left over from the contributions he received.
According to Stacey Loe, Cochrane’s manager of legislative services, Cunin is required by law to keep track of the remaining funds, and, if he were to run again in the next municipal election, would be able to use the money at that time. If he does not run, Cunin would be required to donate the $395 to a non-profit organization or return the funds to the municipality.
Cunin confirmed that he did deposit the remaining funds into a separate bank account, as per directions from the Town of Cochrane.
Loe added that commencing in 2017, candidates would be required to turn remaining funds over to the municipality immediately following an election, which would be tasked with monitoring the money accordingly.
Councillor Morgan Nagel obtained $1,455 in contributions and spent $1,554.43 of his money, totaling $3,009.43.
Nagel’s contributions came from individuals, including several family members.
Councillor Tara McFadden received $1,200 from outside sources and spent $446.99 out of pocket. LaVita Land provided $500 to her campaign.
Councillor Gaynor Levisky was the recipient of $1,185 in contributions, $1,000 of which came from the IAFF. Levisky also chipped in $496.92.
Kaitee Dal Pra got $194.20 in contributions and spent $285.97 on her failed bid to become a town councillor.
Jim Uffelmann, also a candidate who came up shy on voting day, received $20 for his campaign.
Candidates Jamie Kleinsteuber, Steve Grossick, Shana Bruder and Marty Lee did not report any contributions to their campaigns.
Nor did councillors Jeff Toews, Mary Lou Davis and Ross Watson receive (or accept) any contributions.
“I checked to see if I could accept (a donation) then donate to a charity,” said Toews, “but I was not allowed.”
Toews added that he had asked groups offering him money to instead donate to the Activettes, the Nan Boothby Memorial Library or Big Hill Lodge, but did not know if they had followed through.
Toews said he spent approximately $2,000 on his campaign, $500 more than during his first successful effort to become a councillor.
Watson also said he was offered money for his bid for council, but declined, saying he wanted to run a contribution-free campaign.
