Spending ramps up in Sullivan County mayoral race

BLOUNTVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — The two Republican candidates vying for Sullivan County mayor have spent nearly $160,000 combined as election day nears.

According to the latest campaign finance reports, Angie Stanley’s campaign spent $96,676 from the beginning of the campaign through April 23. Incumbent mayor Richard Venable’s campaign spent nearly half that with $50,040 in disbursements reported.

Unsurprisingly, both campaigns ramped up spending in April, which saw early voting get underway on April 13 and election day close to within a month away.

Prior to April, Stanley’s campaign spent $36,451. Between April 1 and April 23, her campaign spent nearly twice that with an additional $60,224 in disbursements reported.

Venable’s spending increased four-fold, from $9,748 before April to $40,291 spent between April 1 and April 23. That doesn’t include a reported $11,060 outstanding balance to Johnson City-based Creative Energy for “media costs.”

Of the combined $100,515 both campaigns spent between April 1 and April 23, just over half went toward advertising as both candidates launched television advertisements. Of the remaining money spent, a large chunk also went toward mailers.

During the first 23 days of April, Stanley’s largest reported expenditure was $35,769 to Cumberland Marketing of Kingsport for “ads.” Venable’s was $20,608 to Creative Energy, also for “ads.”

Stanley’s expenditures (April 1 – 23)

Sullivan County GOP: $800 for Reagan Day Dinner
Cumberland Marketing, Kingsport: $35,769 for ads
Axiom Strategies, Kansas City, Missouri: $20,508 for mailers
Axiom Strategies, Kansas City, Missouri: $2,750 for consulting
Campaign Sidekick, Nashville: $132 for app

Venable’s expenditures (April 1 – 23)

U.S. Postal Service, Kingsport: $580 for stamps
Sullivan County Republican Party: $1,075 for fundraising dinner for party
Lowe’s, Kingsport: $476 for “post for signs, etc.”
Mail Works, Johnson City: $10,051.54 for mailing
Creative Energy, Johnson City: $20,608.78 for ads
Point Blank, Lakewood, Florida: $2,500 for survey
Pixel Media Group, Jackson, Mississippi: $5,000 for consulting

During the first 23 days of April, Stanley received $10,925 in donations to her campaign compared to $11,150 in donations to Venable’s campaign.

Since both campaigns launched, Venable has received over twice as much in donations as Stanley. As of April 23, just under $45,000 had been donated to Venable’s effort compared to $17,400 donated to Stanley’s campaign.

As previously reported, most of Stanley’s campaign funds have come from herself in the form of a $100,000 loan she made to her campaign back in December. Venable has loaned $45,000 to his campaign.

Stanley did see an increase in donations this month, however. Before April, Stanley’s supporters had chipped in $6,475 to her campaign.

The $10,925 donated to Stanley this month includes a $2,250 donation from Citizens for Home Rule, a West Tennessee-based political action committee that opposes forced city annexations. According to state records, Citizens for Home Rule has only made two campaign contributions this year so far, as of early April: one to Stanley’s campaign and another $2,250 donation to a mayoral candidate in southeast Tennessee.