JimmyCsays: At the juncture of journalism and daily life in KC

It’s starting to look like the mayor’s race might be a runaway.

Councilwoman Jolie Justus has raised and spent more money than her closest rivals, and she has more endorsements.

The primary election is now just a week away, and yesterday marked the last day for submitting campaign finance disclosure reports before the primary. (The reporting period began on Feb. 17 and went through last Thursday.)

Each of the top four candidates — Justus, lawyer Steve Miller, Councilman Quinton Lucas and Councilman Scott Taylor — filed reports yesterday with the Missouri Ethics Commission. Let’s take a closer look at the reports, and the campaigns, of those four.

Jolie Justus

Justus raised nearly $150,000 during the most recent reporting period, and she spent about $333,000 — more than twice as much as Miller, Lucas or Taylor.

For the entire primary election campaign, she has raised about $676,000 and has spent nearly $633,000.

Justus is relying almost exclusively on mailers in the primary, sending at least half a dozen to frequent voters. Her campaign consulting company is The Dover Group, which has offices in Philadelphia and Chicago. It’s the same company that strategized Mayor Sly James’ 2011 and 2015 campaigns.

Not coincidentally, James has endorsed Justus. Justus’ other endorsements include the Greater Kansas City Political Caucus; LPAC, an LGBTQ advocacy group; and Emily’s List, a political action committee that strives to elect pro-choice Democratic women.

Endorsements like those serve urban, Democratic, female candidates very well, and Justus fills the bill. Were she running county wide, it would be a different story.

The maximum amount that any person, company or political organization can give to a mayoral candidate in the primary (or general) election is $3,325. Those who have given Justus the maximum include Rosana Privitera Biondo, president of Mark One Electric; Taxpayers Unlimited, a political organization affiliated with Local 42 of the International Association of Fire Fighters; Cliff Illig, co-founder and retired vice-chairman of Cerner Corp.; David Westbrook, a Children’s Mercy Hospital executive; and Hailee Bland Walsh, owner of City Gyms.

Other noteworthy contributors to Justus in the most recent reporting period include members of the Bowen family, which runs Superior Bowen Construction Co.; Cynthia Siebert, founder of the Friends of Chamber Music; former city councilman and now-convention hotel developer Mike Burke; and Nick Benjamin, vice president of the Cordish Companies, which developed the Power & Light District.

Steve Miller

Miller with Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, a former classmate at Rockhurst High

Miller, a former chairman of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission, raised about $112,000 in the most recent reporting period and spent about $148,000.

For the entire primary campaign, he has raised $557,421 and spent $486,865.

The breadth, effectiveness and aggressiveness of Miller’s campaign has surprised me, but I still wonder if he’s going to be able to draw a significant number of votes outside the Ward Parkway corridor, where he lives and where most of his yard signs are located.

He has an endorsement from a Northland group, Forward Kansas City, and he could do well in the Northland partly because of his Transportation Commission experience, but I haven’t been up there and have no way of gauging the depth of his name identity or support there.

Miller has received several maximum-amount contributions. One of those came from Anthony Biondo, who, I believe, is Rosana Privitera Biondo’s husband. Rosana, you will recall from above, gave $3,325 to Justus.

That could be nothing more than the Biondos wanting to “cover their bases.” In races with large fields, that happens a lot, and you will see other examples of it as we go along here.

Other maximum or near-maximum contributors to Miller include two former DST executives, Tom McCullough and Tom McDonnell; McDonnell’s wife, Jean McDonnell; Michael Atha Merriman, a financier who was involved Burns & McDonnell’s unsuccessful bid to build the new airport; and Ellen Merriman, Michael’s wife.

Quinton Lucas

Lucas raised about $34,500 during the reporting period, and spent about $159,000. His $3,325 contributors include Local 42 of the International Association of Fire Fighters; Taxpayers Unlimited; and real estate developer Kenneth Block.

Other significant contributions came from members of the Bowen family, of Superior Bowen Construction.

…I still think Quinton Lucas has the best chance of being the second candidate to survive the primary and move on to the June 18 general election. I base that partly on his support from the black political organization Freedom Inc., which delivers more votes than any other organization, and also from the fact that he appears to be the favorite of Local 42 of the International Association of Fire Fighters, which can deliver several thousand votes.

What gives me pause is the fact that Miller’s campaign seems to be making more “noise” than Lucas’ campaign at this point.

Scott Taylor

Taylor with his wife Cathy Jolly and their son Drake

Taylor has significant support in his home area of south Kansas City, but his campaign has been on the wane. During the most recent reporting period, he raised only $24,760, while spending $147,626.

Taylor’s biggest contributors during the most recent period include $3,325 each from IBEW Local 124 and Taxpayers Unlimited.

Other noteworthy contributors to Taylor include lawyer David Fenley ($2,750), formerly of the Husch Blackwell firm; development lawyer Roxsen Koch ($2,250) of the Polsinelli firm; and former City Councilman John Sharp ($600).

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From the reports filed yesterday, it appears that of the three candidates I’m writing about today, only Taylor had bought TV or radio ads during the most recent reporting period.

It is possible other candidates made media buys after the period closed last Thursday.