Chattanooga City Council incumbents draw more cash for election

Nearly all the incumbents on the Chattanooga City Council hold the advantage in fundraising for the March 7 municipal election.

Campaign disclosures show council members Jerry Mitchell and Chris Anderson, who represent District 2 and District 7, respectively, brought in the most money. Mitchell scored $48,224 in contributions between July 1 and Jan. 15. Anderson ranks second with $27,620.

Anderson brings his cash to a rematch with Manny Rico, who he unseated in 2013. Contender Erskine Oglesby Jr. makes the election a three-way contest for the district, one short of the four-way race that voters decided four years ago.

"There's a vast difference in fundraising, and I think that reflects the success we've had in the district over the last four years," Anderson said. "People want to move forward and not return to the past."

Rico, who brought in $3,700, including a $3,000 loan from his wife, said that was fine with him.

"I don't believe in buying an election," Rico said. "If people are going to vote, it doesn't matter how much money you raise."

Rico said he would rather knock on doors and talk to voters instead of having to deal with what campaign contributors will demand of him later.

Oglesby said his campaign has raised $7,960.

The financials for Anderson and Oglesby were not posted on the Hamilton County Election Commission website as of Wednesday evening. The election office could not be reached for comment. Both candidates said they expected their information to post to the site soon.

Highlights from Mitchell's lengthy list of contributors include a $500 donation from Hamilton County Property Assessor Marty Haynes and a $1,000 donation from developer Ken Defoor.

Mitchell's opponent, Mickey McCamish, brought in $20,000. His family donated $9,000.

In District 9, challenger John Kerns holds the unique distinction of raising more money than an incumbent. Kerns' campaign has raised $9,012, compared to the $3,600 raised by Councilman Yusuf Hakeem. However, Hakeem started with $5,401 on hand in July. Kerns outspent Hakeem by about $1,600, but Hakeem has $1,600 more on hand for the campaign's final stretch.

Other District 9 challengers include Patrick Benson Jr. and Demetrus Coonrod. Benson has raised $975; Coonrood's financials have not been posted on the election office website.

The Chattanooga mayoral race shows a similar trend, with Mayor Andy Berke almost doubling the $274,855 he had on hand in July. He still has $414,490 at his disposal. Two challengers, Larry Grohn and Chris Long, raised less than $40,000 between them. Financials for mayoral candidate David Crockett are not available on the election office website.

Contact staff writer Paul Leach at 423-757-6481 or pleach@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @pleach_tfp.