By Matthew Reichbach
Those seeking the position of Mayor of Albuquerque could begin gathering signatures and collecting qualifying contributions for public financing last Saturday.
In the first week, three candidates have received over 250 qualifying contributions of the 3,780 needed. The qualifying contributions are $5. Candidates looking for the $755,946 in public dollars still have plenty of time, as the qualifying period does not end until June 21.
All but two candidates who filed to run for mayor are seeking public financing.
Incumbent Mayor Tim Keller led the way with 564 verified contributions, while former Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White had 422 and former U.S. Attorney Alexander Uballez received 351.
Albuquerque city councilor Louie Sanchez received 193.
Bringing up the rear were Patrick Sais, with 2, and Alpana Adair, who did not receive any.
Candidates seeking public financing can also receive “seed money” of up to $151,189.20, with limits of $250 per donor. The first campaign finance reports for seed money and for candidates raising money for private financing were due earlier this month, with the next deadline on May 12.
At the same time as they’re collecting qualifying contributions, candidates are collecting signatures to get on the ballot. Candidates need to collect 3,000 verified signatures to secure a place on the November ballot.
Uballez leads the way, with 1,056 verified signatures, the only candidate who is more than a third of the way to the goal. He joined in receiving at least 100 signatures by Keller (497), White (337), Sanchez (302), Mayling Armijo (224) and Eddie Varela (129). Further down the list, Brian Fejer has received 24 verified signatures, Sais 9 and Adair 1, leaving her 2,999 signatures from qualifying for the ballot.
Candidates return their collected petitions and qualifying contributions each Tuesday, which means these numbers only reflect the activity through April 22.
The election will also receive some attention from city council candidates, as the exploratory period for the five city council seats begins April 27. Council candidates can begin collecting seed money at that time, though they will not begin collecting signatures and qualifying contributions until June 2.
