Westlund already nets $101,000

By James Sinks / The Bulletin
February 24, 2006

SALEM - Since dropping his party affiliation and launching an independent bid for governor last week, state Sen. Ben Westlund of Tumalo has heard the question more than once: Can an independent candidate be viable in an era of multimillion-dollar campaigns?

After only a week on the campaign trail, he thinks that concern is starting to be answered. He hit six figures Wednesday in campaign checks and pledges.

According to his staff, the sum was $101,000 from 72 donors, and counting. And none of that money comes from the personal bank account of Westlund, a successful agribusinessman who now works as a health care industry consultant.

"I am extremely grateful for the support of people who know me and believe in my ability to bring the best people together, regardless of party, to solve real problems for real Oregonians," he said.

He received $4,000 through pledges on his campaign Web site, he said.

Still, Westlund's fundraising is dwarfed by the war chests already amassed by several candidates in the May partisan primary.

Portland Republican Ron Saxton, for instance, announced he'd raised $1 million by the end of 2005. The spokeswoman for Salem Republican Kevin Mannix, while not releasing fundraising figures, said major campaigns should have at least $1 million by March to be competitive.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski, who faces a three-way race in the Democratic primary, has raised more than $1 million, said campaign manager Cameron Johnson.

However, Westlund's fast start is likely to turn heads - and unlike those candidates, he does not need to survive a primary vote.

Former state Rep. Tim Knopp, of Bend, who now heads the Central Oregon Builders Association, said the key to Westlund's campaign will be his ability to keep attracting donations.

"Getting to $100,000 in one week, starting from ground zero, is an impressive number for any candidate, let alone an independent," said Knopp, who was once among the Legislature's top fundraisers.

He expects Westlund will eventually top $2 million in donations - and that's without the backing of one of a major political party.

"Money raised attracts more money," Knopp said. "People want to support somebody viable, and the more (Westlund) raises the more he will be able to raise, and people will see somebody to take seriously as a candidate."

Felix Schein, the spokesman for the Saxton campaign, said he'll be interested to see whether Westlund can sustain his fundraising pace.

While the money was officially raised in one week, Westlund has been touring the state for months. "I'm sure there were some commitments in that time," Schein said.

Westlund hasn't just been dialing for dollars and giving speeches in the infancy of his candidacy.

In an eventful first week, he was targeted by an Internet whisper campaign and is quarreling with the Secretary of State's Office over his quest for signatures to qualify for the November ballot.

The spokeswoman for Secretary of State Bill Bradbury, a Democrat, told the Associated Press that Westlund should not be encouraging all voters to sign his petitions of candidacy. Independent candidates need 18,386 signatures to formally qualify for the general election.

A new law says Republicans or Democrats who cast ballots in the May primary cannot also sign petitions for independent candidates.

Westlund said he was puzzled by the remarks from the secretary of state, who he has thanked for processing his petition forms quickly.

The law says anybody is allowed to sign to support him - even registered Democrats and Republicans, Westlund said.

If those people end up voting in the May 16 primary, their names will be removed from petitions before they are submitted, he said. The names of people who submit ballots are a public record.

Westlund also was forced to deal with a whisper campaign on a Democratic-leaning Web site, and acknowledged giving a Capitol staffer an unwanted hug in 1997. Westlund apologized at the time of the incident.

The woman who believes she was the subject of the hug - the Web site doesn't identify the woman - is now a state representative. She said last week the hug wasn't a big deal and didn't rise to the level of sexual harassment, and she was surprised to see it blown out of proportion by an anonymous blogger.

James Sinks can be reached at 503-566-2839 or at jamess@cyberis.net.