warning Hi, we've moved to USCANNENBERGMEDIA.COM. Visit us there!

Neon Tommy - Annenberg digital news

Funding The Fight For Mayor

Graham Clark |
March 4, 2013 | 2:27 a.m. PST

Staff Cartoonist

The mayoral election has spurred action from some seriously self-started candidates. Kevin James and Emanuel Pleitez were among those to grab headlines and win support from Angeleos despite having origins outside of established political structures.

What makes these candidates outsiders more than anything else is their lack of financing. The top two likely candidates for a run-off election, Wendy Greuel and Eric Garcetti, raised a combined total of $8.5 million to date. Compare that to Pleitez and James, whose combined campaigning capital didn’t quite reach $700,000.

To put that another way, these indie candidates netted less than 8 percent of the funds in Greuel and Garcetti’s coffers.

READ MORE: A Neon Tommy's Coverage Of The LA Mayor's Election

With the primary election one day away, everyone running for the office of mayor is out championing their cause as maximally democratic in full force. Though each has campaigned vociferously in uniquely personal terms, this statistic may speak to L.A. residents louder than any voice. The vote totals that come in on March 5 will be of note to anyone interested in money’s influence on city elections or the real-world viability of independent candidates.

 




READ MORE FROM GRAHAM CLARK
: Comics And The Real World

Contact Staff Reporter Graham Clark here, follow him here.



 

Buzz

Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

Watch USC Annenberg Media's live State of the Union recap and analysis here.

 
ntrandomness