More than $38K spent on city election

The deadline for filing campaign financial reports for the Whitefish city election passed last week. Three new city councilors were elected this year and an appointed incumbent was defeated in what has been characterized as a contentious if not "mean-spirited" election.

More than $38,000 was spent in this year's city council election, including money from candidates, political action committees and individuals, and including money spent without specifically promoting or opposing a candidate.

This pales in contrast to the $102 million New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg spent to get re-elected to a third term. In narrowly defeating challenger William Thompson Jr., who spent about $9 million, Bloomberg broke his own record for the most expensive self-financed political campaign in U.S. history.

The biggest spender in Whitefish was not a candidate and doesn't live inside the city. Rick Blake spent $13,266 of his own money, about one-third of all money spent in the election, on his one-man PAC, We Love Stumptown. The four candidates spent $18,949, a little over half the total.

The candidates

Among the four candidates running for three seats, Whitefish attorney Frank Sweeney spent the most, according to his filings with the Montana Commissioner of Political Practices — $8,932.

In a losing effort — Sweeney came in fourth with his name marked on 48 percent of ballots — Sweeney took in $7,420 from 67 donors. With two weeks left in the all-mail election, he put in $1,000 of his own money on Oct. 19 and another $2,000 the next day.

Sweeney's donors included community leaders and others known to support new and stricter environmental regulations and the controversial downtown streetscaping plan. The money went to newspaper ads, mailers and literature dropped off at residents' front doors.

Retired golf course developer Phil Mitchell, who edged out Sweeney by 90 votes for third place, spent the least among the candidates — $3,100, and all his own money. He said he sent 10 checks back to the donors, including $160 from the political action committee Better Government PAC.

"I sent it all back," he said. "I didn't want to be tied to anyone. I'm not going to change my thoughts because I got elected."

Mitchell said the campaign was a difficult experience for him.

"I was criticized and lied about, but I just let it go," he said. "A person can get caught up in politics."

Whitefish developer Bill Kahle, who came in second with his name marked on 67 percent of ballots, spent the least — $2,295. He could be heard on radio ads along with several Whitefish businesses broadcasting a generic message urging people to vote.

According to his filings, Kahle received $4,137 from 31 donors, including numerous family members. He says his father led the family effort. Like Mitchell, he returned the $160 check from Better Government PAC.

Kahle made an attempt to show his independence from the other three contenders. He allowed his name to be put on a pro-Sweeney newspaper ad and spoke favorably of the incumbent. He also blamed outside influences — particularly We Love Stumptown — for creating the impression that he, Mitchell and Chris Hyatt were running as a slate.

"I felt frustrated to be seen as a unit," he said. "I wanted to be judged on my record on the issues."

In the end, Whitefish voters made their own independent choices, Kahle said.

"Look at the voting numbers," he said. "They're not identical numbers — they're all over the board. At the end of the day, the people voted for what they felt was best for the city."

Hyatt, who is credited with working a hard door-to-door campaign, received the most votes, with his name marked on 71 percent of ballots.

"Looking back, I had no idea I would be the top vote-getter," he said. "Especially if you look at the results of the last election."

The former downtown ski-shop owner said his goal was to protect the Whitefish "paradise" and lifestyle, and like the other two challengers, he promised to listen to the people.

"I wanted to hear what people had to say, so I went door-to-door," he said. "That worked better than listening to what was said at the election forums."

Hyatt collected $5,565 from 40 donors, many of them wealthy residents living in the city's two-mile planning and zoning "doughnut" area, along with several prominent developers. He also cashed the $160 check he received from Better Government PAC.

The PACs

Two lobbying organizations with PACs invested money in this year's city election. Montana Conservation Voters PAC spent $1,006 on mailers for Sweeney. In 2007, the PAC spent $1,756 mailing cards in support of mayoral candidate Cris Coughlin and council candidates John Muhlfeld and Ryan Friel. Volunteers also manned phones to get out the vote.

The non-partisan Billings-based organization had 2,716 members statewide at the time of the 2007 Whitefish election, of which about 300 lived in the Flathead and 63 lived in Whitefish. In its 10th year, MCV says it works to protect Montana's air, land, water and conservation traditions.

A local MCV panel interviewed three of this year's four council candidates. Mitchell said he "tried to interview them" instead and then turned them down. Hyatt said he felt MCV had made up their mind about an endorsement ahead of time, and Kahle said his refusal to run as a slate with Sweeney and councilor Nick Palmer, who later dropped out, cost him an endorsement.

The Flathead Business and Industry Association, which surveyed 5,100 "doughnut" property owners in May 2008, changed the name of their political action committee this year from FBIA PAC to Better Government PAC.

Chuck Denowh, a Helena-based political consultant who is the past executive director of the Montana Republican Party, is Better Government's treasurer. He said there was no "technical link" between FBIA and Better Government, but they were closely aligned.

Based in Kalispell, FBIA has represented business owners throughout Northwest Montana since incorporating in 1993, according to executive director Denise Smith. She said the organization ensures that business interests are represented in the public policy arena at local, state and federal levels.

Among Better Government's major contributions, according to their Oct. 18 filing, were $10,000 from Semitool Inc. chairman Ray Thompson and $1,500 from shopping center developer Mark Goldberg. Their campaign investment, however was most likely aimed at the Kalispell city election, where most of Better Government's money went this year.

Two Whitefish residents, Bill Halama and Lyle Phillips, donated to Better Government. The PAC contributed $160 apiece to Hyatt, Kahle and Mitchell. Only Hyatt cashed the check. The PAC also sent out two mailers promoting Hyatt, Kahle and Mitchell as "three new, great candidates' and "leaders who will listen."

The citizens

Several interested citizens, individually or in groups, paid for ads and mailers that either promoted or opposed candidates or simply encouraged people to get out and vote — and to vote carefully.

Early on, Whitefish developer Tim Grattan spent $3,000 on a mailer promoting Hyatt, Kahle and Mitchell. Two years ago, under the name Sensible Land Use, Grattan and Florida businessman Pat Fox posted mailers sharply criticizing the city's new Critical Areas Ordinance. The city responded by mailing its own brochure calling Grattan and Fox "a group of real estate developers' promoting "half-truths, errors and distortions."

Grattan didn't target candidates in 2007, but he said he learned a lesson about not putting his name and address on political mailers. That lesson was drove home last week when the Montana Commissioner of Political Practices ruled that Bozeman businesswoman Barbara Campbell violated election laws in 2006 by not indicating on her mailers who issued them or paid for them.

Five former city councilors and mayors responded to what they called "negative campaigning" in an Oct. 29 newspaper ad that didn't name candidates. "Communities are built on trust," Andy Feury, Cris Coughlin, Sarah Fitzgerald, Shirley Jacobson and Velvet Phillips-Sullivan said in their ad.

Whitefish building contractor Eric Payne's ad in the same newspaper called for a change by electing "community-minded candidates' — Hyatt, Kahle and Mitchell. Payne cited rising taxes and budgets, 'record legal bills' and the city's 'reputation as being unwelcoming to new business."

Downtown business owner Sam McGough's postcard-sized mailer also promoted Hyatt, Kahle and Mitchell "because we need leaders who listen." McGough said his main concern is the downtown streetscaping plan and how the current city council "ignored" a petition signed by more than 600 residents opposed to narrowing Central Avenue.

A postcard mailed by former Democratic state senator Dan Weinberg asked voters to support "my good friend Frank Sweeney." Calling him a "man of ideas, not ideology," Weinberg said Sweeney "is a problem solver, not a deal maker" and "works only for the common good."

The photo op

Weinberg's Republican successor in the state senate, Ryan Zinke, a Whitefish native, paid about $600 for a newspaper ad promoting the three challengers. Zinke said Hyatt called him about getting an endorsement, so he agreed to meet with Hyatt, Kahle and Mitchell. Zinke said he'd met Mitchell once before, but he didn't know Hyatt and Kahle.

Hyatt, who initiated the idea, said he sought the endorsement of other long-time family residents in Whitefish. He also noted that word-of-mouth endorsements were actually more effective than a letter-to-the-editor in a newspaper.

After they arrived at the high school football field, talk turned to shooting a photo with Zinke, a highly-decorated former Navy SEAL, and the three candidates. Hyatt's wife, Jen, had come equipped with a camera, but the dense fog prevented them from using the big Bulldog sign as a backdrop, so the group drove down to City Beach.

It was while enjoying views of the lake that Zinke pointed out the location of the Great Northern Veterans Peace Park, which he has been promoting and developing for several years. Hyatt, who has young children, expressed interest in the sledding opportunities, and Zinke said he needed some signage for the park.

All three candidates pledged donations to the park, which showed up in their campaign filings — $100 from Hyatt and $170 apiece from Kahle and Mitchell. It was not a quid pro quo arrangement, Zinke said. All three candidates agreed, adding that Zinke's endorsement was an honor and very important.

For his part, Zinke expressed a concern about Rick Blake's expensive mailing and Internet campaign that sharply criticized Sweeney and promoted Hyatt, Kahle and Mitchell.

"I called him on the phone," Zinke said. "I told him I didn't like the negative tone and said it's going to boomerang. The three candidates don't want it."

He also reminded Blake that, like Sweeney, he also was from Texas. It didn't seem right to criticize Sweeney for being an attorney from Dallas, Zinke said, and he asked Blake to come up with a "tongue-in-cheek" response.

Blake was clearly the biggest spender of all — he spent $13,266 of his own money on his one-man PAC, We Love Stumptown. The bulk of it, $8,385, went to direct mail, Blake said.

According to his Oct. 17 filing, the money also went to a phone survey conducted by FLS Connect, of St. Paul, Minn., a Web mail account in the Grand Cayman Islands and to his political consultant in Helena, Chuck Denowh.