Matthew Thorsen
Mayor Miro Weinberger
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger has raised plenty of cash for his attempt to
retain his seat come March.
By the first campaign finance filing deadline on Sunday night, Weinberger had raised more than $80,000 — far outpacing independent Carina Driscoll, who drummed up $32,900. The other candidate, independent Infinite
File
Infinite Culcleasure
Culcleasure, had not filed as of Monday morning.
Weinberger raised the sum from 361 donors, according to an email his campaign sent out Sunday. He's spent about $57,000 of that war chest so far, including on the salaries of four people who worked on the campaign, a host of volunteer meals, and about $5,000 on mass media advertising for brochures, postcards and ads in the
North Avenue News.
Driscoll, meanwhile, drew
support from allies of her stepfather, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), such as longtime Sanders staffer Jeff Weaver. Several people associated with Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign contributed: Tim Tagaris, Sanders' digital fundraising director; media consultant Julian Mulvey; and Chuck Rocha, another consultant.
Driscoll's mother, Jane O'Meara Sanders, donated $1,000, as did Driscoll's two siblings, Nicole and David Driscoll.
Carina Driscoll also loaned her campaign $10,000 of her own money.
She also netted smaller donations from Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry's; Paul Sisson, who served briefly in Weinberger's administration; and a handful of Burlington Progs including city council president Jane Knodell (P-Central District) and state Sen. Chris Pearson (P-Burlington).
Unlike Weinberger, Driscoll did not have a lengthy list of $1,000 donors.
Among Weinberger's key supporters were some of the regular pro-development suspects. He received a total of $4,000 in contributions from four members of the Pomerleau family, plus $1,000 checks from developers Erik Hoekstra and Larry Williams, Nedde Real Estate and South Burlington general contractor Dan Morrissey.
He also received contributions from Democratic stalwarts: Bill Lofy, who served as chief of staff for former Vermont governor Peter Shumlin; former gubernatorial candidate Sue Minter; journalist Garrett Graff, who
flirted with a run for lieutenant governor; Luke Albee, a former longtime staffer for Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.); former state senator Hinda Miller; and former Vermont House speaker Shap Smith.
With more than a month remaining until Town Meeting Day, Weinberger is on pace to surpass his 2015 fundraising total of about $90,000.