Yes, I know everyone is focused on the Republican primary Tuesday. And I know that November is a long way away. But already the numbers are starting to roll in for local City Council races and The Virginia Public Access Project is on top of things.
Last week, VPAP posted the information from the June 1 filing reports for Virginia Beach and Suffolk. (Of course, this may not reflect all of the candidates who will be running, since the filing deadline (pdf) is also this Tuesday.) A couple of interesting things in the numbers:
- Andrew Jackson, making his second run for Beach Council, is leading in the fundraising for one of two at-large seats.
- Barbara Henley, who currently holds the Princess Anne seat, has raised no money.
- Almost no money has been raised in the Suffolk races, mainly because most of those seats will be uncontested. Joseph Barlow is not seeking re-election. The interesting race there seems to be in the Holy Neck race
As I was looking at this information, it dawned on me that with all the money flowing to campaigns, it would be nice if each one of them donated to VPAP. The service provided by VPAP to the citizens of the Commonwealth is not only commendable, but a necessity. Surely the campaigns can afford it.
Oh yeah – and if you haven’t checked out the new precinct-level maps, you should. (Here’s mine.)
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
Good point on the donation, Vivian. I love VPAP. It lets me follow the money, which sometimes explains a lot.
Thanks for this post.
Yes, following the money is important.
The Virginia Beach numbers are too early to mean that much.
However, if Andrew is still 2nd (or 1st) next report and Henley unable to raise money, there’s a story.
Except that early money is like yeast: it gets bigger. It will be interesting to see what the next reports look like.