Ric Cavender has raised more than $14,500 in money and in-kind contributions toward his Kanawha County school board campaign, more than tripling the haul of his nearest competitor for the two board seats up for grabs, and Cavender says he still has over $7,000 left to spend.
"I'm a believer in this valley and I'm a believer in sticking around to make a difference," he said, "and I think my contributors see that."
According to the election's first finance reports, which were due Friday, former Charleston city councilman Adam Knauff has raised $4,002 and spent most of it, leaving about $335 heading into the May 10 primary election.
School board races are nonpartisan, the winners will be selected during the primary election and they'll take office at the July 1 start of the Kanawha school system's next fiscal year.
Knauff said he had raised and spent an additional amount of less than $100 since he turned in his report.
The finance reports show incumbent board member Jim Crawford, who said he hasn't requested contributions, has raised $1,725, including $300 from Oshel Craigo, who owns the Tudor's Biscuit World and Gino's Pizza and Spaghetti House chains. Since turning in his report, Crawford said he's received $1,000 from the American Federation of Teachers union, and he's spent $1,175 overall this election, leaving him about $1,550.
Robin Rector is the only other board member whose seat is up for re-election, but she chose not to seek another term. Crawford, who's been on the board 16 years, said the most he's ever spent in a campaign was $5,000 to $6,000, and that was two to three terms back.
"I just think, if people like what I've done, they'll support me," Crawford said. "... Performance speaks for itself."
The final candidate, Bill Carpenter, a retired longtime construction manager who said he's self-funding his campaign, has only spent $45 of his own money on the filing fee and business cards.
Cavender's contributors include many relatively well-known Charleston and political names, including several people who are on the Charleston Main Streets Board of Directors that employs Cavender as executive director of the economic and community development organization.
Donations include $500 from Charleston attorney Steve White, father of current school board member Ryan White; $200 from Delegate Brad White, R-Kanawha; $200 from Sara Payne Scarbro, deputy state director for U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.; $100 from Charleston mayoral assistant Rod Blackstone; $100 from state Tourism Commissioner Amy Shuler Goodwin, who's married to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Booth Goodwin; $100 from John Bullock, owner of Gaddy Engineering and father of Tighe Bullock, another West Side developer; $100 from Les Wilkerson, president of the East End Community Association; $75 from Sen. Chris Walters, R-Putnam; and $50 from Kanawha County Manager Jennifer Sayre.
Other donors include Charleston City Council members, including $100 from Democrat Mary Jean Davis and $100 from Democrat Andy Richardson. Davis also is on the Charleston Main Streets Board of Directors.
Adam Krason, who gave Cavender $250, is president of that board and is an architect and principal at Charleston-based ZMM Architects & Engineers. Cavender also hosted a "kickoff fundraiser" at ZMM's Lee Street location in Charleston that netted him $4,405.
Charles Wilson, Kanawha's executive director of facilities planning, said ZMM worked on the last two schools Kanawha built - Edgewood Elementary and Mary C. Snow West Side Elementary - but the school system tries to spread work around and is currently working with three other architectural firms on projects like the additions and renovations to Andrews Heights Elementary.
Cavender also got $1,000 from the American Federation of Teachers and $350 from the West Virginia School Service Personnel Association, which represents many non-educator school workers like bus drivers and cooks.
Knauff picked up $500 from the Kanawha County Education Association after receiving the sole endorsement of that union's political action committee, as well as $350 from the School Service Personnel Association, $100 from Paula Flaherty, who's on the Charleston Main Streets Board of Directors and also gave to Cavender, and $200 from Charleston-based BrickStreet Insurance Chief Executive Officer Greg Burton.
Knauff said he's raised enough money to get his message out, but said he'd also love to do another fundraiser. He criticized Cavender for spending most of his money purchasing campaign yard signs from Louisville, Kentucky-based My Campaign Store, noting his position as executive director of a local development group.
"He has abandoned its core principal of shop local," Knauff said.
Cavender responded that he was on a tight deadline to get his campaign signs out as fast as possible while still finding a unionized company to print them.
Reach Ryan Quinn at ryan.quinn@wvgazettemail.com, facebook.com/ryanedwinquinn, 304-348-1254 or follow @RyanEQuinn on Twitter.