Follow the Money, 2013

Reshma Saujani is the founder of Girls Who Code and is a likely contender for NYC Public Advocate.  She was previously the Deputy Public Advocate, and she lost the 2010 14th Congressional primary against incumbent Rep. Carolyn Maloney.  She was the first Indian-American woman as well as the first South Asian woman to run for US Congress.

Her undeclared 2013 committee has spent $102,249.11 so far, beginning with credit card processing fees in April of ‘12.

Her categories are:

• Consultants (including payrolled workers, this will later be disambiguated as payments to individuals and payments to firms)
• Data
• Finance
• Fundraising
• Insurance
• Office
• Payroll Tax
• Political
• Postage
• Website

Here is her chart:

That’s fifty-seven percent on consultants and workers.

That’s one and a half percent on some NationBuilder data.

Eight and a half percent went towards bank charges and payment processing fees.

Seventeen percent went towards fundraising efforts.

Insurance costs accounted for a percent and a half of the spend.

Office expenditures were kept at three and a half percent.

Payroll tax accounts for eight and a half percent.

Political contributions make up two percent of the spend.

The postage buy is small, allowing for roughly 370 mailings.

The website accounted for one percent of the spend.

Erick Salgado is a reverend who is a part of Ruben Diaz Sr’s New York Hispanic Clergy organization, is preparing a run for mayor as a “Conservative Democrat,” meaning Adolfo Carrion won’t be the only one.

He has spent $1,836.50 so far, beginning with a bank charge presumably from setting up an account last month.

His categories are:

• Finance
• Fundraising
• Office

Here is his chart:

That’s four percent on bank charges.

Twenty-seven percent accounts for a deposit on a fundraising event.

Two months of rent accuonts for sixty-eight and one half percent of the spend.

Helen Rosenthal is running for the 6th District Seat being vacated by term-limited Gale Brewer.  I have known Helen for several years, as she is a frequent attendee of MYD events, and she is one of the candidates who has a Jon Reznick Photography category, though these photographs were taken in ‘11 and she has since hired another photographer (wink wink).  Her first campaign expenditure was for a campaign consultant in August of ‘10.  Her total spend is $47,618.18.

Her categories are:

• Consultants (firms and individuals)
• Data
• Finance
• Fundraising
• Jon Reznick
• Office
• Postage
• Website

Here is her chart:

That’s seventy-eight percent on consultants.

Four and a half percent on finance charges.

Two and a half percent on fundraising expenses.

Half a percent went towards my photographic services!

Office expenses are kept at four and a half percent.

Postage, half a percent, is enough for almost 500 mailings.

The website accounted for half a percent of the spend also.

Council Member Rose became the first African American elected official on Staten Island when she won her seat to represent the 49th District in 2009 and she is seeking re-election.

Her campaign has spent a total of $29,391.31 so far, beginning with a fundraiser in March of ‘11.

Her categories are:

• Advance Repayment
• Consultants
• Fundraising
• Political
• Postage
• Print Ad

Here is her chart:

That’s nine percent on repaying an advance she gave the campaign.

Sixty-five and a half percent went to consultants.

Twenty-one percent was spent on fundraising.

Political and postage expenses were negligible, with enough stamps for roughly 300 people.

The campaign directed two and a half percent of the spend to a print ad.

Council Member Rodriguez was first elected to the 10th Council District in 2009.  When the new city districts take effect for 2014, I will be a resident of the 10th District.  He is known as an advocate for immigration reform, police brutality, tenants’ rights, workers rights, and affordable housing.  

Ydanis is known outside of NYC for his arrest at Occupy Wall Street in November of ‘11.  He had been present, along with other Council Members, to observe the behavior of NYPD.  Charges against him were dropped five months later.

His re-election campaign has spent a total of $37,827.62 so far, beginning with rent for office space, paid in August of ‘11, to the Northern Manhattan Democrats for Change, an uptown political club.

His categories are:

• Consultants
• Fundraising
• Office
• Political
• TV Ads
• Website

Here is his chart:

That’s forty-four and a half percent on consultants.

Nine and a half percent went towards fundraising.

Office expenses accounted for eighteen percent.

Eight percent went to political contributions.

Seventeen percent was spent on TV ads.

Three percent went to the website.

Recchia, the term-limited City Council Member for the 27th District in Brooklyn had been eying the role of Comptroller, but he stepped aside and endorsed Scott Stringer for that role.  While his committee is undeclared, he is rumored to be contemplating a run at the Brooklyn Borough Presidency.

After accounting for a Fundraising Allocation he took in ‘09, he has spent a total of $143,682.28, beginning with a Dunkin run in February of ‘10.

His categories are:

• Advance Repayment
• Apple Store
• Consultants (including a worker)
• Data
• Finance
• Flowers
• Fundraising
• Legal
• Office
• Political
• Postage
• Print Ads
• Website

Here’s his chart:

That’s negligible sums on advance repayments, the Apple Store, finance charges, and flowers.

Consultants consume fifty-seven and a half percent of the spend.

Data accounts for two percent.

Fundraising accounts for seven and a half percent.

Legal fees are at one and a half percent.

Office expenses, including the first recorded campaign flat tire are at nineteen percent of the outlay.

Political contributions account for six and a half percent.

Postage, at a negligible sum, proportionally, is still enough to reach over 2,600 people.

Print ads account for two percent of the spend.

The website cost a third of a percent.

Zead Ramadan is running for the NY 7th Council District, which is being vacated by the term-limited Robert Jackson.

He has one expenditure so far, on food.  Not sure if it was for a fundraiser or not.

• Food

That’s 100 percent on food.

As far as I can tell, Quiroz ran for the 25th Council District, in the Jackson Heights area of Queens, dropped out of the race (which went to Daniel Dromm), and then suspended his ‘09 campaign.

This campaign took a Fundraising Allocation, meaning it is still open and hanging onto cash.  It has not, however, spent a dime since the ‘09 election, and may as well be inactive.

No spending means no chart!  This is a record I may end up deleting, but it is an active committee with data so I’ve included it for now.

Christine Quinn is the Speaker of the New York City Council from her 3rd Council District seat, representing Chelsea and Hells Kitchen, and those environs on the West Side in Manhattan.

Originally, Quinn sought the Mayoralty in 2009, but when the Council she led extended term-limits for its own members and for the Mayor, Quinn “suspended” her ‘09 Mayoral campaign, formed a new ‘09 Committee, and held onto the raise from her original ‘09 campaign — as is reflected in a massive Fundraising Allocation that is counted against her spending cap.

After removing the Fundraising Allocation, Quinn’s real expenditures are $512,369.68, and while this ‘09 oddity means she’s still filing expenses going back nearly six years, the first expenditure after she began her current and final City Council term was to secure a PO box in March of ‘10.

Her categories are:

• Advance Repayments
• Consulting
• Data
• Finance
• Flowers
• Fundraising
• Legal
• Office
• Political
• Postage
• Travel
• Website

Here is her chart:

That’s two percent on advance repayments.

Fifty-nine percent of the spend so far goes to consultants.

Two percent was spent on data.

Eight percent went to bank and finance charges.

The campaign bought flowers.

Fundraising efforts consumed fourteen and one half percent of the budget.

Legal fees take up four percent of the spend.

Office supplies are also held at four percent.

Political contributions amount to a fifth of a percent.

Postage, a third of a percent, enables the campaign to mail over 4,100 people.

Travel, frequently reimbursed to the City of New York, accounts for three and a half percent of the spend.

The website takes up the remaining two percent of the spend.

Queens County Clerk Pheffer is believed to be running for Borough President of Queens, and is reported to have the second largest war-chest (after Peter Vallone, Jr.).  Pheffer resigned from her Assembly seat in 2011 to become the Queens County clerk after the post was left vacant by the death of Gloria D’Amico in 2010.  To date, she has made no official announcements, though her committee is filed.

When you take her massive Fundraising Allocation out of the picture, she has spent a total of $1,856.54, going back to the purchase of a domain name in July of ‘10.

Her categories are

• Fundraising (catering)
• Website