By KIT SLACK with reporting by SOFIE PATERNITE
Only one of the 12 candidates running for the open county council seat had raised more than $5,000 for their campaign by July 19, according to campaign finance reports filed with the state July 26.
Mail-in and early voting has begun for the August 6 primary.
Jolene Ivey, the current chair of the county council, had a balance of $132,000 in campaign funds at the beginning of the year. She has raised around $150,000 since then, and spent more than $130,000, including $100,000 on direct mail, and $12,000 on fundraising.
The largest single contributor to Ivey’s campaign was Avi Bernstein, of the real estate company BDMG, who gave a total of $7,500. Among other contributions over $5,000 were at least three more from employees of real estate or construction companies, and at least two from employees of automotive companies.
Seven candidates filed statements saying they had campaign funding balances of zero; these included Democrats Angela Angel, Leo Bachi Eyombo, and Gabby Njinimbot, as well as all Republican candidates.
Candidate Tim Adams, the current mayor of Bowie, has said he is self-funded. His report shows only one outside contribution, $637 from County Councilmember Krystal Oriadha (District 7). Adams spent more than $30,000 on direct mail and advertising. His report cites nearly $4 million in outstanding loans to himself since 2017. Adams ran for state senator in 2018 and 2022.
Read the candidates campaign finance statements at the links below.
Democrats:
Republicans:
Michael Riker
Isaac Toyos
Jonathan White
* Prior versions of this article misstated the total donations from Bernstein to Ivey at $10,000 instead of $7,500, and misstated the total amount of outstanding loans Adams made to himself at $3.9 billion rather than $3.97 million.
Sofie Paternite is a 2024 summer intern at Streetcar Suburbs.
