Donations to Badlands-focused PAC near $50,000
A new political action committee responsible for mailers hammering Las Vegas City Council candidates has pulled in $48,000 since it was formed in February.
In the nearly three-week reporting period from March 11 to March 31, Citizens for Better Neighborhoods drew $33,000, on top of the $15,000 received in the prior month. The PAC spent $21,275 in that time, including more than $15,000 on printing, a report filed Friday with the Nevada secretary of state’s office shows.
The PAC’s mailers focus on the candidates’ opposition to developing the Badlands golf course — a plan that has drawn fierce resistance from residents of the adjacent Queensridge development.
The first mailer targeted Christina Roush and Steve Seroka, who are challenging incumbent Bob Beers to represent Ward 2. Two later mailers focused solely on Roush, who has outraised Beers. One depicts her as Uncle Sam in the iconic “I Want You” poster with the claim that her opposition to developing the Badlands golf course will cost taxpayers millions.
Mailers from the PAC and Beers’ campaign portray Roush as a puppet and question who is manipulating the strings. The PAC’s mailer calls them “rich fat cats in Queensridge,” while the Beers campaign-funded mailer calls them “power brokers” who want control of the City Council.
A Roush campaign mailer contends Beers has a “long history of pay-to-play politics,” including tens of thousands of dollars from Badlands project proponents.
Roush added nearly $24,000 to her campaign coffer during the period, growing her war chest to roughly $280,000. She reported spending $55,660 in the past three weeks on mailers, billboard advertising and other signage. Seroka raised $52,000, roughly half of his 2017 funds, in the past three weeks.
Beers raised $48,000 during the reporting period, increasing his total contributions for the year to $219,828. His campaign spent nearly $47,000 in that time.
Elsewhere in Las Vegas, former Nevada Assemblywoman Michele Fiore added $65,000 to total $175,350 for the year, easily the most among Ward 6 candidates. Kelli Ross drew $16,000 during the period, for a total of roughly $89,000 and Chris Garvey received $23,600 for the period, raising her total to more than $63,000.
NORTH LAS VEGAS
Mayor John Lee raised $8,350, reports show. Lee has collected $124,455 and spent $119,939 since Jan. 1. Mayoral candidate Gary Bouchard raised $300 since Jan. 1, while De’Quincy Taylor collected $200.
Ward 1 Councilman Isaac Barron collected $22,285, and since Jan. 1 he has raised $79,929 and spent $59,339. His opponent, Hector Rivera, raised $450 since Jan. 1.
Ward 3 incumbent Anita Wood raised $34,395, bringing her total to $75,720 in contributions since Jan. 1. She has spent $72,848 this year. Scott Black collected $19,583 to bring his total to $55,726 since Jan. 1, with $47,282 in expenses.
Fellow Ward 3 candidates Tom Collins and Ender Austin III did not file updated reports Friday. Previous filings show Collins raised $29,553, while Austin reported $400 in donations and a $2,000 loan to himself.
HENDERSON
Councilwoman Debra March raised $41,809 in her bid to slide into the mayor’s seat. March has collected $125,278 and spent $309,966 since Jan. 1.
That’s a sharp contrast to opponent Rick Workman, who raised $7,461 and has $31,558 since Jan. 1. Workman has spent a total of $29,354 on his campaign.
Once again, the secretary of state’s office showed no filing from mayoral candidate Gerald “Jerry” Sakura. During a March 27 debate, Sakura said, “I’m 77, so I don’t want to be your mayor.”
Meanwhile, Ward 3 Councilman John Marz raised $21,500, bringing in a total of $62,000 since Jan. 1. Records show he has spent $175,303 since the beginning of the year, with much of it going toward advertising for campaign mailers with slogans such as “Promises Made, Promises Kept,” despite his initial promise of not running for re-election when he was appointed in 2011.
Opponents Matthew DeFalco and Carrie Cox raised $3,172 and $389, respectively.
Contact Jamie Munks at jmunks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0340. Follow @JamieMunksRJ on Twitter. Contact Art Marroquin at amarroquin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0336. Follow @AMarroquin_LV on Twitter. Contact Sandy Lopez at slopez@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4686. Follow @JournalismSandy on Twitter.
