Week of February 8, 2006

Ohio's Betty Sutton receives coveted endorsements

Millionaire opponent airs television ads

Labor lawyer and EMILY's List candidate Betty Sutton recently won several important endorsements. The first came on Feb. 6 from the Laborers' International Union of North America -- Local 310, which represents construction industry workers in northern Ohio counties within the 13th congressional district where Sutton is running. On Feb. 8, the Ohio Association of Professional Fire Fighters, representing more than 10,000 firefighters across the state, announced unanimous support for Sutton. A champion of public education and teachers, Sutton then received another endorsement on Feb. 13 from the Akron Education Association (AEA), the largest independent teachers union in the country representing more than 2,000 teachers in the Akron area. These endorsements reward Sutton for her advocacy on behalf of working families in Ohio -- including protecting workers' compensation benefits from GOP attacks, fighting to maintain first-responder services for her community, and facing down corporate special interests to secure workers' health care and pensions. Sutton has repeatedly proven that she allows integrity and ethics to guide her decisions instead of the pressures of special interests, and is outspoken against the involvement of special interest money in the legislative process.

Sutton also won the endorsement of a former rival for the Democratic nomination in this open seat. Former Brunswick Township Trustee Jack Schira recently dropped out of the OH-13 Democratic primary and endorsed Sutton, calling her an "excellent choice."

While Sutton builds her grassroots support, Schira's exit from the field nonetheless leaves her facing three aggressive challengers in the May 2 primary. One of them, a shopping mall heiress, has already put $81,000 of her fortune toward television ads airing this week in the expensive Cleveland media market. Sutton must continue to muster the resources and build her campaign war chest to compete with her resource-rich opponents.

Cantwell opponent on the air

Sen. Maria Cantwell's Republican opponent Mike McGavick, a millionaire former insurance executive, launched a biographical television ad last week. McGavick is the first Senate challenger to run an ad this year against an EMILY's list candidate. A costly statewide ad buy this early in the race portends a very expensive campaign ahead. McGavick also secured a rare pre-primary endorsement from the state Republican Party on Jan. 28, meaning Cantwell faces a united GOP determined to defeat her in 2006.

Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire signs gay rights bill into law

Gov. Christine Gregoire (D-Wash.) signed into law on Jan. 31 a bill that adds sexual orientation to the state's anti-discrimination statutes in housing, employment, insurance, and credit. Washington, which has been deliberating on the measure for 30 years, is the 17th state to pass such legislation. The law will take effect this June. Conservative activist Tim Eyman is gathering signatures to bring this measure to a public vote and further restrict civil rights.

Miami memorial service for Coretta Scott King

EMILY's List members in the Miami area are invited to a memorial service for Coretta Scott King, the widow of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 12. The service will be preceded by a march starting at 4 p.m. from the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Post Office at the corner of N.W. 67th Street and Carrie Meek Boulevard (N.W. 27th Avenue) to the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Plaza Metrorail Station at 6205 N.W. 27th Avenue in Miami. Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fl.) has asked EMILY's List to serve on the host committee for this memorial service honoring King, a civil rights pioneer in her own right. King continued her late husband's legacy after his assassination by establishing the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta and advocating for a federal holiday to honor his memory. For more information, please contact Rep. Meek's district office in Miami at (305) 690-5905.

In the money: year-end fundraising reports show EMILY's List candidates' strength -- and their opponents'

Self-funders have lent millions to campaigns against Michigan's Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Illinois's Rep. Melissa Bean, and California's Francine Busby.

But strong grassroots support for these outstanding pro-choice Democratic women is helping them keep pace with their wealthy opponents.

Dick DeVos, the likely Republican challenger to Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, and his family lent his campaign nearly $1 million in the last quarter of 2005, signaling his willingness to use his family's fortune to bankroll his campaign.

Granholm isn't the only EMILY's List candidate facing a millionaire opponent. Six Republicans are looking to unseat Illinois Rep. Melissa Bean, including at least two self-funders. Investment banker David McSweeney has lent his campaign nearly $1 million dollars and lawyer Kathy Salvi has dumped $285,000 of her own money into her race. Their ability to open their wallets scared businesswoman Teresa Bartels, a serious candidate, right out of the primary field -- leaving six Republicans jockeying for the March 21 nomination to take on Bean.

Suddenly EMILY's List candidate Francine Busby, running in an April 11 special election in California's 50th district, also faces a relentless self-funder. Eric Roach, who entered the race Feb. 6, has vowed to bankroll direct mail and heavy television, radio, and full-page newspaper ads in an attempt to buy his way into Congress in the April 11 election.

So far Granholm, Bean, and Busby have kept up with these stop-at-nothing self-funders through strong grassroots support. Bean raised nearly $1.8 million by the end of 2005; Granholm raised $4.96 million; and Busby has raised $519,777. They must maintain their momentum to compete with their super-rich challengers.

EMILY's List candidates flex fundraising muscles

Minnesota

Amy Klobuchar is in strong shape to become the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Minnesota. Klobuchar's fundraising strength and multitude of endorsements from state party leaders have already succeeded in keeping one millionaire Democrat from entering the primary race. But now she must keep competitive with the GOP standard-bearer, Rep. Mark Kennedy, who has raised nearly $3.7 million, according to his year-end campaign finance report.

Kennedy got a helping hand from just about every prominent Republican you can think of -- including Bush himself, who raised $1 million for Kennedy's campaign at a single Minneapolis fundraiser. Kennedy may have Bush, but Klobuchar has something better: EMILY's List! Thanks to support from EMILY's List members, Klobuchar raised $700,000 in the last quarter of 2005 for a total of $2.5 million raised.

Klobuchar got good news in January when Patty Wetterling dropped out of the Democratic primary and enthusiastically endorsed Klobuchar; and Feb. 7, potential challenger Mike Ciresi decided not to run. Now Wetterling has set her sights on Kennedy's House seat. She challenged Kennedy in 2004 and will draw on the grassroots support she built in that campaign to win the now-open seat in November.

Missouri

EMILY's List Senate candidate Claire McCaskill is keeping pace with anti-choice Sen. Jim Talent in fundraising and polling. In the last three months of 2005, McCaskill raised $919,457 to Talent's $1.11 million -- and Talent had fundraising assists from Bush and Vice President Cheney!

Talent barely won this seat in 2002 by just over 21,000 votes (out of more than 1.8 million cast). Frequent public polling shows he'll have a tough time holding on with McCaskill as his challenger. The latest poll shows McCaskill at 47 and Talent at 44 -- an extremely tight race. McCaskill benefits from a 16-point gender gap. McCaskill's strength has forced the Cook Political Report, a prestigious weekly political forecaster, to move this race from the "leans Republican" to the "toss-up" column -- a major coup for McCaskill.

New Mexico

There's a reason political pundits are calling the race for New Mexico's first congressional district one of the top U.S. House races nationally. Attorney General Patricia Madrid raised $524,052 between October and Dec. 31. Her opponent, Rep. Heather Wilson, had nine extra months to build her war chest, which she reported at $1.3 million.

The two women's fundraising sources couldn't be more different, however, with 45 percent of Wilson's contributions coming from political action committees or other special interests. Seventy-two percent of Madrid's individual contributors are from her state.