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Monday, March 18, 2024
March 18, 2024

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State GOP support to Stewart hits $89,000

County commission rival Pridemore mulls ethics claim

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Money keeps flowing into Republican Clark County commissioner candidate Jeanne Stewart’s campaign coffers, and that could result in a change to her opponent Craig Pridemore’s election strategy.

Pridemore, a Democrat, said his campaign has had internal discussions about whether to use a chunk of what’s left of his campaign cash on a television commercial. He said the decision would be made early next week.

It would mark the first time Pridemore had used a television advertisement in his 14 years in politics.

“The desire is to reach as many voters as we can,” Pridemore said. “Now they’re reaching a host of voters who would not have been picked up” with mailers.

Such a move would prove to be a calculated risk. Pridemore has just $41,853 left unspent in his war chest, according to the state’s Public Disclosure Commission. Producing a commercial and airing it locally would likely eat up most of that money.

Stewart, meanwhile, is already airing a commercial, paid for using a $35,000 in-kind donation from the state Republican Party. And that was before the state GOP contributed more money to her campaign this week.

In two last-minute filings, the state Republicans upped their donation to Stewart by $54,000. She’s now received $89,000 from the state party. With the additional money, Stewart’s campaign has now raised $138,000.

As of Oct. 14, Stewart’s campaign reported spending $63,813.

With the new contributions, Stewart has now received more money from the state GOP than any other Washington candidate, an unprecedented move, observers say, considering that local races don’t usually fall on the radar of the parties at the state level.

Pridemore has tied the money to Commissioner David Madore and real estate developer Clyde Holland, saying the contributions are “an effort by (Madore) to cement his control over county politics.”

Prior to the state Republicans contributing money to Stewart’s campaign, Madore and Holland made large donations to the party. Pridemore said he believes that money was passed along to Stewart with a “wink and a nod” by the state GOP.

Madore did not respond to inquiries made by email, on Facebook or in person, and refused to discuss why he deleted the question posted to his Facebook page.

Stewart did not respond to two phone messages.

Pridemore said it’s unlikely that his campaign will be able to raise the additional $100,000 he thinks he would need to fight the influx of money to Stewart’s campaign coffers.

He said he expects his campaign will top out at $95,000. He has currently raised $75,682 and has spent $33,829 of that.

He said he’s also contemplating filing an ethics complaint with the Public Disclosure Commission alleging that Madore and Holland are skirting the state’s public disclosure laws.

But he acknowledged he’s yet to uncover a smoking gun.

“The circumstantial evidence is overwhelming,” Pridemore said. “The real issue to me is disclosure. If Madore is controlling the race, let the people see that.”

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