Adrian Fenty, the Democratic nominee for D.C. mayor, has raked in hundreds of thousands of dollars in the last month from industry and individuals who supported his opponents during the primary campaign.
Fenty, the Ward 4 D.C. Council representative, has raised more than $300,000 since the Sept. 12 victory, including 62 contributions of $2,000 each, the maximum allowed by law. He ended the Oct. 10 filing period with $460,426 in cash on hand, money that will be spent on some pre-transition activity and to secure a general election win.
“You still have to feed people on election day,” said Alec Evans, Fenty’s campaign manager. “You still have to give them T-shirts and hats.”
Some examples of the sudden generosity:
» In July, outgoing D.C. School Board President Peggy Cooper Cafritz contributed $2,000 to Council Chair Linda Cropp’s mayoral bid. On Sept. 15, Cafritz wrote a $2,000 check to Fenty.
» Bill Hall, a key member of the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission board, waited until October to send a $2,000 check to Fenty’s campaign. He had sent the same amount to Cropp months earlier.
» On June 9, Arlington’s Bowen Building donated $2,000 to Cropp, and exactly three months later, when a Fenty victory appeared inevitable, the same amount went to Fenty.
» Developer Herb Miller, chairman of Western Development Corp., and his family donated thousands of dollars to Cropp’s primary bid. But once polls closed, he quickly moved $1,000 Fenty’s way.
» Associated Builders and Contractors of Metropolitan Washington delivered $1,500 to Fenty on Sept. 30. ABC of Virginia contributed $1,000 on the same day.
Fenty, who was never considered the best friend of big business, made an appearance last week at a Greater Washington Board of Trade networking event.
“After the election, we reached out to him, to congratulate him and to say ‘We’re here to work with
you,’ ” BOT spokesman Alan Smith said. “The way I look at the appearance Wednesday is he was reaching back.”
Race for Board of Education president
» Former City Administrator Robert Bobb had raised $163,585 through Oct. 10, including a $50,000 loan, ending the period with $86,586.
» Carolyn Graham, current school board vice president, had $10,937 on hand as of Oct. 5. She had raised a total of $33,212, including a $10,000 loan.
» Timothy Jenkins ended the period with $10,873 on hand, and Laurent Ross had $2,862.
