Saturday, February 26, 2000
Bedinghaus leads in cash
Levy campaign for city schools borrows $200,000
BY HOWARD WILKINSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Hamilton County Commissioner Bob Bedinghaus has a campaign fund that dwarfs either of his two potential Democratic opponents in the early stages of the campaign.
Campaign finance reports filed this week with the Hamilton County Board of Elections also showed that the campaign to pass levies on the March 7 primary ballot for Cincinnati Public Schools has collected $256,364, including a $200,000 loan from the Cincinnati Business Committee (CBC).
Cincinnatians Active to Support Education (CASE), the pro-school levy committee, took a loan from the CBC that will be paid back later as contributions to CASE from major Cincinnati companies are made. The CBC is a private group of some of the city's top business executives.
According to pre-primary campaign finance reports, Mr. Bedinghaus, a Republican, had raised $169,968 and had $153,865 in the bank as of Feb. 16.
Todd Portune and Marilyn Hyland — the two Democrats vying in the March 7 primary for the chance to take on Mr. Bedinghaus this fall — were far behind the incumbent in fund-raising and had spent most of what they have raised on the primary fight.
Mr. Portune, a Cincinnati city councilman who announced his candidacy in early January, filed a report showing he had raised $24,438 and had a balance in the bank of $1,856 as of Feb. 16.
Ms. Hyland, an Indian Hill resident who ran against Com missioner Tom Neyer Jr. two years ago and lost, has raised $16,686 so far and had $1,938 in the bank as of Feb. 16.
Most of Mr. Bedinghaus' money was raised in 1999, including $44,000 from Reds' principal owner Carl Lindner and his family and $13,500 from Bengals' president Mike Brown and his family. Mr. Bedinghaus has been the county's point man in the construction of new riverfront stadiums for the Reds and Bengals.
Since the beginning of the year, Mr. Bedinghaus' campaign has raised only $11,650. Mr. Bedinghaus has no Republican primary opponent and, thus, has had to spend little money so far.
The other county commissioner up for re-election this year, Republican John Dowlin, reported a campaign balance of $26,151.
His Democratic opponent, Colerain Township Trustee Joe Wolterman, filed a report saying he had not raised or spent money up to the Feb. 16 cut-off date for pre-primary campaign finance reports.
But Thursday night, Mr. Wolterman and Mr. Portune shared the proceeds of a major fund-raising event in Sharonville organized by Cincinnati Democrats and labor unions.
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