SPRINGFIELD—Since filing a pair of reports earlier this month, Hispanic Latino Leaders Now Independent Expenditure PAC (HLLN), has been busy. The SuperPAC, with a stated mission of electing Latinos and flush with cash from home care executive Cesar Ruiz, has begun to move into this year’s elections.
With barely three weeks until the preliminary on September 12, the candidates for mayor of Springfield have begun to face off in formal settings. This month, therapist David Ciampi, at-large Councilor Justin Hurst, Council President Jesse Lederman and State Rep Orlando Ramos have the chance to challenge the mayor to his face.
Four weeks before E-day yet another candidate for mayor of Springfield is going on television. City Council President Jesse Lederman has purchased ad time on WWLP, the more-watched of the region’s two major broadcast stations, with more buys expected. His WWLP run follows City Councilor
Days after the incumbent bought his first batch of airtime ahead of the September mayoral preliminary in Springfield, one of his major challengers has followed suit. At-large City Councilor Justin Hurst went up on television Thursday morning with a one minute spott.
Thanks to his reelection war chest’s sheer size and robust monthly fundraising, Domenic Sarno still has the most money among Springfield mayoral candidates. Yet, his monthly burn rate has reached nearly $50,000. Money is not the only campaign finance story in June, though.
Over $21 million in bonding was before the Springfield City Council last Monday, weeks after Mayor Domenic Sarno successfully pushed his budget through. Nearly all of these were normal capital projects that do not belong in the budget anyway.
On June 20, for the first time since the shroud of the coronavirus fell upon Springfield, city councilors confronted Mayor Domenic Sarno, faccie e faccie, in chambers as he presented his budget for new fiscal year.
The budget process is always political. This is true whether the context is the hottest set of races Springfield has seen in a decade or not. Yet, on display at the City Council meeting last Monday was proof that chambers had become an area in the city’s political battlefield this cycle.
Patterns that began to emerge in April campaign finance reports for the Springfield mayoral race came into clearer focus in May. Incumbent Domenic Sarno took back the top fundraiser spot, but his monster spending put him into a deficit while two of his challengers kept building their reserves.
Challengers to Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno enjoyed some brisk fundraising as the race itself picks up speed. While May reports, which will be due in a few days, should show whether candidates can maintain this pace, the April numbers could alter some of the assumptions about the money race.