Republicans Give McLean Incumbent Delegate 75 Percent of Her New Campaign Donations

Incumbent Republican Del. Barbara Comstock, whose district includes McLean, led all Virginia state candidates in recent fundraising with 75 percent of her cash coming from Republican PACs controlled by the governor, the speaker of the House of Delegates and U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor.

Comstock, who is running for re-election to a second term in the Virginia House of Delegates from the 34th District, raised nearly $230,000 in cash in September including $100,000 from a PAC controlled by House Speaker Bill Howell, plus another $25,000 directly from Howell and $25,000 from Gov. Bob McDonnell's PAC. The governor has headlined at least two fundraisers for Comstock in McLean.

Her total even surpassed that of Howell, whose fundraising totalled nearly $200,000, according to numbers published by the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization. The totals were as of Sept. 30.

Comstock's Democratic opponent Pam Danner raised about $82,000.

Comstock could not be reached for comment. Her campaign manager Amanda Isaacson said, “We are pleased that Delegate Comstock’s success in focusing on the priorities of her District – jobs, roads and schools – has earned her broad support throughout the district from a bipartisan group of business leaders and community leaders."

"Comstock seems to be a pretty well-connected lawmaker, and it shows through her prodigious fundraising," said Kyle Kondik a political analyst, at the University of Virginia Center for Politics. "One important thing to note is that, because this is a Northern Virginia seat, candidates do need to raise more money than in the rest of the state, especially if they want to be on television."

Republicans are ahead of Democrats in fundraising this election year both in McLean and in Virginia.

"As for the statewide figures, I do believe that the wind is at the Republicans’ backs," Kondik said.

Over in the 31st Senate race, one of the most watched in the state, Democrat Barbara Favola raised $102,000. Her challenger, Republican and McLean resident Caren Merrick, raised $168,000 for September.

Merrick, a businesswoman running for the first time, was the eighth biggest fundraiser in the state. Favola, a long-time member of the Arlington County Board, was 20th.

The September contributions for candidates running for county supervisor and school board are not yet available.

Now let's follow the money and the donors for each candidate as reported by the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonpartisan organization.

Barbara Comstock, Republican, Incumbent

Where the money came from: Nearly $200,000 comes from PACs controlled by Howell ($100,000), $25,000 directly from the Howell for Delegate committee, $25,000 from McDonnell's PAC and $11,000 from Cantor's PAC. Cantor, a suburban Richmond congressman, is majority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Largest individual contributor: $25,000. Paul Singer, of New York City. Singer heads a $17 billion hedge fund, and is a self-described Barry Goldwater conservative, according to The New York Times.

"He is not new to fundraising — he raised money for George W. Bush, Rudolph W. Giuliani, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and, surprisingly, gay rights initiatives — but his prominence has risen lately with his donations as he and other conservatives tap into a rising tide of anger on Wall Street toward Washington. His largess reflects a recent surge in Wall Street money to Republicans," the Times said.

Money on hand: $377,601.

Percentage from McLean: 41 percent for September.

Pamela Danner, Democrat, attorney

Where the money came from: A little over $30,000 came in cash contributions. Nearly $50,000 came from "In-Kind contributions" with the bulk coming from the Virginia Democratic Party.

Largest individual contributors: $5,100 from her mother-in-law Helen Danner. $5,000 from Sonjia S Smith, of Charlottesville who is an attorney who works with nonprofits. Her husband is an asset manager.

Money on hand: $79,800.

Percentage from McLean: 65 percent for September. 

31st District Virginia Senate

Caren Merrick, Republican, businesswoman

Where did the money come from: $106,700 from cash contributions and another $55,000 from in-kind contributions. The Republican Party of Virginia and McDonnell's PAC contributed a total of $78,700 to her campaign. Merrick has also lent her campaign $51,000.

Largest contributor: $10,000 from Singer.

Other $10,000 contributors: Robert Hisaoka, of McLean, a car dealer associated with Rosenthal Nissan, and Gary G Nakamoto, a Great Falls resident and chairman of Base Technologies.

Cash on hand: $140,076

Percentage from McLean: 20 percent in September

Barbara Favola, Democrat, member of the Arlington County Board

Where the money came from: About $80,000 in cash and another $21,000 in in-kind contributions, of which approximately $16,000 was from Democratic Party sources. Sen. Janet Howell's committee donated $10,000.

Largest single individual contributor: $25,000 John G Shooshan, of Potomac, Md., who is a major developer in Rosslyn and Ballston.

Money on hand: $62,612

Percentage from McLean: 37 percent for September.