Campaign war chests modest in comparison to 2007 Norman City Election

Campaign war chests modest
in comparison to 2007 city election
By Carol Cole-Frowe
Transcript Staff Writer

The eight candidates vying for Norman City Council even-numbered seats in Wards 2, 4 and 6 appear to have relatively modest campaign war chests this year, totalling a little more than $20,000 in contributions as of noon Friday in required filings for the 2008 campaigns. The figures will doubtless go up some when final expenditures are turned in after Tuesday’s municipal election.

But they hardly compare to last year’s total of $101,093 in final expenditures for seven council candidates in the 2007 races in Wards 1, 3 and 5. Incumbent Ward 7 councilmember Doug Cubberley did not draw an opponent in 2007.

For the 2008 races, Ward 2 candidate (Democratic Consultant) Chebon Marshall leads the way for the open seat being vacated by Richard Stawicki, with $5,530 and $250 in in-kind contributions. Marshall, who owns a small (Democratic) advertising and marketing firm in Norman, was chief of staff for former Oklahoma Congressman Brad Carson.

Many of Marshall’s contributors read like a Who’s Who on the state political scene. Among his donors are Carson, $250; former Oklahoma governor David Walters, $100, former Oklahoma Speaker of the House Loyd Benson, $50; former Congressional candidate David Hunter, $250; and former Congressional candidate and Democratic Party vice chair Ben Odom, $500.

Ward 2 candidate Tom Kovach, a Norman small businessman, raised $1,645, with $200 in in-kind contributions. His largest donations came from geologist Glen Brown, $500; former Ward 3 councilmember Jim Stanley, $200; and Gerald Eugene Baker at $200.

Michael McKee, Ward 2 candidate and a Norman attorney, trails the field with $400 in donations: $200 from Michael Geigerman and $200 from Jeannette Coker.

Ward 4 incumbent Carol Price Dillingham, a Norman attorney, is not far behind Marshall, with $5,340 in contributions. Included in her backers are two sitting Norman councilmembers, with Ward 3 councilmember Hal Ezzell donating $500 and Ward 1 councilmember Bob Thompson contributing an in-kind donation of $47. Former Norman police chief Don Holyfield and his wife June contributed $500 to Dillingham’s campaign, as did Jim Jones and Barbara Jones, with $500 apiece.

Gregory Jungman, Ward 4 candidate, brought in $2,330 with $374 in-kind.

Jungman, an adjunct political science professor at Rose State College and a senior advisor for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, opposed the Norman City Council’s recent vote in favor of an appeal to overturn a Historic District Commission denial of a Certificate of Appropriateness for a large addition at 516 Chautauqua Ave., owned by Glen Brown.

Jungman garnered several donations from Brown’s neighbors, including $500 from physician Hawkins Adams and Nancy Curry; $150 from Theresa and Trent Baggett; $50 from Russell and Barbara Mathis; and $300 from Rick and Debbie Poland.

He also received donations from several current or former Historic District Commission members including Jayne Crumpley, $50; Nancy Yoch, $50; and Judi Hadley with husband John, $100.

Former councilmember Lois Lawler Brown also contributed $100 to Jungman’s campaign.

Ward 4 councilmember Chris Jingozian, a mental health worker, did not list any contributions.

In Ward 6, small businesswoman Lou Mansfield received $2,395 in contributions and $625 in-kind in her quest for the open seat being vacated by David Hopper.

Mansfield’s largest contribution was from Glen Brown at $500.

Also supporting her campaign were former Norman mayor Ron Henderson with $100; and former councilmember Lyntha Wesner and husband Charles at $100.

Ward 6 candidate Jim Griffith, a Norman dentist, listed $400 in contributions and another $400 in a self-contribution. His contributors include Chuck Thompson at $200 and Kathy Heiple at $200.

Incumbent Ward 8 councilmember Dan Quinn did not draw an opponent, but received a $500 contribution from the Realtor Political Action Committee.