Most 8th District campaign funds coming from outside area

If U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson and her Democratic re-election rival Tommy Sowers had to rely only on campaign donations from within the 8th Congressional District, neither would have enough money to pay their bills.

A review of campaign finance reports filed earlier this week with the Federal Election Commission shows that Emerson, a Republican who has been in office since 1996, and Sowers, a former U.S. Army major from Rolla, raised only a small fraction of their money at home.

For the three months ending Dec. 31, Emerson raised $318,863, while Sowers took in $179,127. Of the $301,100 in itemized contributions Emerson reported, $52,750, or 17.5 percent, were from addresses within the district. For Sowers, in-district contributions totaled $14,075, or just over 10 percent of the $139,951 in itemized contributions on his report. Contributors who give less than $200 do not need to be named in federal election reports.

Tommy Sowers

During the same three months, Emerson spent $90,405 on her campaign, while Sowers reported spending $103,580. Emerson had $414,864 on hand as of Jan. 1, while Sowers treasury contained $264,629.

Two other candidates, Republican Bob Parker of Texas County and independent Larry Bill of Jackson, raised far less than either Emerson or Sowers. Parker reported raising $1,145, while Bill, who must seek petition signatures to get on the ballot, reported putting $3,548 in personal funds into his campaign.

Emerson's fundraising total includes $154,000 from political action committees, none based in the district. The biggest single group of PAC contributors during the quarter were labor unions, which gave Emerson $28,000. The unions include several in the construction trade that have ties to Emerson's husband, Ron Gladney, either as the union's lawyer or as a lobbyist registered with the Missouri Ethics Commission.

PACs with ties to agriculture gave Emerson $25,000, while those related to insurance and banking gave $11,000 and $15,000, respectively.

Sowers raised far more from donors outside Missouri than from within the state. Donors with addresses in other states gave about $91,000 to Sowers' effort, while those inside the state, including the 28-county 8th District, provided just under $50,000.

In a news release sent out earlier this week, Sowers said the amount Emerson from PACs, which represent groups that lobby Congress, shows she has lost touch with the district. "People here tell me they are tired of business as usual in Washington," Sowers said in the prepared statement. "The lobbyists and special interests behind Emerson are exactly what people here are sick of."

A statement issued Thursday by Emerson aide Jeffrey Connor on behalf of the campaign said her donations represent support from people and organizations that care about the district. "Jo Ann's support comes from some 1,200 individuals who live in the Eighth District and from organizations with a direct connection to Missouri and the interests of our state," the campaign said. "Campaigns also should be about the courage of candidates to take positions on the issues and their good ideas for the people they seek to represent."

Emerson's supporters have repeatedly questioned when Sowers would take strong stands on the issues facing Congress.

Sowers' campaign did not issue a statement before press time.

Parker, who has been campaigning since July as a conservative alternative to Emerson, said he won't need the big dollars that Sowers or Emerson has raised. He is relying in part on tea party activists to spread his message that Emerson voted for the $700 billion bank bailout and spending bills that add to the deficit.

"Her rhetoric is completely a deception of what she has actually been doing," Parker said. "She is hoping someone like me isn't going to be passing out brochures with her votes. I don't have a big staff hired and pay them tons of money. And I don't think it is going to take a million dollars to beat Mrs. Emerson."

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent addresses:

Cape Girardeau, MO

Rolla, MO

Jackson, MO

Texas County, MO