Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.With more than a year to go before the next city election, Omaha City Councilwoman Jean Stothert has the largest campaign war chest at City Hall.
A World-Herald review of last year's campaign finance reports shows Stothert stockpiling more cash than any of her six council colleagues or Mayor Jim Suttle.
Stothert had $112,701 in her campaign account at the end of 2011, including more than $85,000 in contributions for the year. Prominent Omaha business interests were among her largest donors.
Suttle reported cash on hand of $94,174. The mayor, however, spent roughly $180,300. He also drummed up $230,636 in contributions since March 2011.
The campaign finance reports for the council members and mayor cover most or all of 2011.
Stothert's report suggests she could be angling to raise enough money to make a bid for something bigger than her southwest Omaha council seat.
The next mayoral election is in May 2013. It's not unusual for candidates to start accumulating cash in advance.
Stothert last week declined to say whether she plans to run for mayor. Suttle has not publicly committed to a re-election bid, though he said recently that he likes his job.
Last year's campaign finance report clearly shows Suttle's fundraising heft in the city.
Stothert pulled in checks from notable names including former Mayor Hal Daub, $500; Omaha banker Sid Dinsdale, $1,500; business executive and football coach Joe Moglia, $5,000; and Omaha businessmen Pete Ricketts, $2,500, and Ken Stinson, $2,500.
Local development and construction companies such as Swain Construction, $2,500; Hawkins Construction, $1,000; HDR Inc., $2,500; and the Metropolitan Omaha Builders Association, $2,000, ranked among Stothert's largest business donors.
Meanwhile, Suttle's individual donors included local philanthropists Richard Holland, $15,000, and Susie Buffett, $1,100; and ex-Mayor Mike Fahey, $1,000.
Recent Suttle appointees also were among his contributors. Former Mayor P.J. Morgan, who was appointed to the Omaha Airport Authority, gave $2,000.
Godfather's Pizza founder and local entrepreneur Willy Theisen gave $2,000. Lund Co. contributed $5,000 — John Lund is the firm's CEO.
Suttle appointed both Theisen and Lund to the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority.
Business companies that wrote checks to Suttle included Union Pacific Railroad, $20,000; Broadmoor Development Co., $15,000; and First National of Nebraska, $5,000.
A considerable portion of the mayor's expenses in 2011 included $23,000 worth of consulting and other fees paid to Prairie Strategies, which assisted Suttle during the January 2011 recall attempt against him. Suttle's 2011 expenses also included $51,614 in legal fees paid to Vince Powers, a Lincoln attorney who represented Suttle in a court battle over the recall.
Contact the writer:
402-444-1068, johnny.perez@owh.com
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