Gennaro's Campaign Has Much More Cash on Hand Than Padavan's
More from Bharat Ayyar, who looked into the race between Republican State Senator Frank Padavan and Democratic challenger Jim Gennaro.
As of the July filing, here's how much money they have on hand:
Padavan - $116,642.20
Gennaro - $406,965.01
It's surprising that Gennaro is raising so much more money than Padavan, since people don't see Padavan as being as vulnerable to a Democratic challenger as some of his Republican colleagues in the State Senate, like Serf Maltese, Caesar Trunzo, and Joe Robach. And even thought the Republican State Senate Campaign Committee has a lot more money than their Democratic counterpart, having to pour money into Padavan's race would just be one more drain on their resources.
And not only does Padavan has less money on hand, but the district has more registered Democrats than Republicans. A lot more. According to the latest figures from the state Board of Elections, in the 11th State Senate district there are 85,860 registered Democrats to 32,669 registered Republicans.
Among the expenditures:
Padavan spent $5,801 on lawn signs and $380 on flag pins.
Padavan also paid $600 to sponsor baseball teams in the Bayside and Glen Oaks Little Leagues.
And Padavan paid $600 to Times Ledger columnist Dee Richards for photographs.
Gennaro paid Joanne Gennaro a total of $8,275.98 for her counsel, including $115 in reimbursements.
UPDATE: Bharat notes that Joanne Gennaro, the one the campaign paid more than $8,000, is the wife of the candidate. She was working as a fund-raiser for the campaign from 2006 to April of this year, until she was replaced by Jeffrey Guillot.
I spoke with Guillot, who said, "As the campaign kicked into high gear, they needed a full-time fund-raiser. And that's me."
I asked Guillot if the candidate had any concerns about the appearance of impropriety of paying a family member with campaign money. Guillot said he couldn't speak to Gennaro's thoughts at the time, but said that when candidates hire a fund-raiser, it has to be someone in whom "you have the utmost trust."
UPDATE II: Guillot called to point out the Joanne is a professional fund-raiser, and, as the filings show, was pretty good, which supports the idea that she wasn't getting paid simply because she was married to the candidate.
- Poll
- Obama (D)
- McCain(R)
- Spread
- RCP Average
- 47.2
- 44.3
- Obama +2.9
- Candidate
- Favorable
- Unfavorable
- Spread
- Obama
- 54.0
- 34.9
- +19.1
- McCain
- 52.0
- 36.1
- +15.9
Gennaro is a sleaze bucket. Go back and look at his Council filings and his now his senate filings. He has been selling out to real estate developers while pretending to fight to preserve the present character of our bedroom community. Padavan has consistently fought against over development in our largely one-family home residential community so developers are getting even with him by funding Gennaro. Look closely at Gennaro's in kind and monetary contributions too. These guys are exceeding funding limits and breaking camapaign finance laws to boot. Now we find out he is so greedy he is taking a 8 g payoff through is wife? That is beyond unethical. The Attorney General should investigate as should City DOI.
Hanson, you've got to be kidding (and on Padavan's payrole). Whose idea are all these developments you're griping about? Mike Bloomberg. And Frank Padavan has his head so far up Mike's butt that he's crowding Chris Quinn. If Frank was really interested in the community, and really wanted to accomplishing something of substance for it, he's got ready access to The Man. But, apparently, he's more interested in begging Mike to help out with political stunts (naming a school complex after him), than demanding that Mike stop screwing his constituents. Have any of Padavan's crocodile tears about overdevelopment paid dividends? Not a one, because they are accompanied with a wink and nod to his patron saint Mike. Hanson's hand-waving about Gennaro's contributions is just an attempt to distract from the bottomline: Padavan's more interested in grandstanding and being Bloomberg's lapdog than doing his job.
Underestimate Gennero at your own peril. He is one of the hardest working council members and I believe he can upset Padavan. I've met Padavan several times and he has about as much personality as a cactus.
We have lived in Gennaro territory since he came into office and aside from walking into a room with a camera and wanting to have his picture taken with people he perceives as important he is incapable of doing much more. When the community asked for help with the Saint John's off campus dorms being built in the midst of our residential community he professed to be an ardent opponent of the dorm project always claiming that he was vigorously advocating on behalf of the community all while accepting campaign donations from the developers who are building the dorm! Look at his track record with the Jamaica Plan he also voted against the best interest of the community. Money and power are his sole motivators. If this does not provide a glimpse as to his sleazy ways we do not know what will. He is always talking from both sides of his mouth. Our community deserves better!!!!
Luca;
I am a life long Democrat and I much prefer to have a hard working, ethical Senator with a cactus personality (although I happen to think Senator Padavan he is very pleasant) than a Jim Gennaro who will double cross the community for a campaign contribution. Be careful what you wish for!
Read the latest Queens newspaper my friend you will find out one of Gennaro's biggest donors is the person responsible for trashing the residential area's around St John's College. Let's face it $$$$$ means favors and if Gennaro gets in (which will be by us people) he will repay he donors and Queens area around St John's will see a much bigger building boom. Come on people open up your peepers we vote them in and they screw us over and over again what's it going to take?