As September primaries near, one candidate for Bethlehem Town Board has already vastly out raised his competition.
Jack Cunningham will face off against newcomer Bill Reinhardt for the Democratic ballot line in November’s General Election. As of a July mandatory financial report, the former supervisor had collected more than $12,600 in donations and still had about $8,700 on hand. In comparison, Reinhardt collected about $425 and was $2,010 in the red.
“I think we’re doing good,” said Cunningham. “I had funds from other campaigns as well, so I guess (fundraising) started back in May. Right now I have enough funds to get the campaign off the ground and get it rolling
Cunningham has the endorsement of both the town Democratic and Independence Parties, while Reinhardt, a member of the Bethlehem Reform Democrats group, is running on the Democratic line and is endorsed by the Working Families Party.
The winner will face Republican Jeremy Martelle — who also has the endorsement of the town’s Conservatives — to serve the remaining year of the Town Board seat term currently held by appointee George Lenhardt. Martelle had raised about $250 with $195 still on hand as of the latest financial disclosure report.
All three candidates have said they plan to take on a more grassroots strategy to fundraising this year. Several people have offered to host house parties for Reinhardt in the coming weeks, while Cunningham has already started going door-to-door to speak with residents. Martelle said he will be doing low-key meet-and-greets and take a similar approach.
“I don’t believe money is everything at this level,” said Reinhart. “This is not like the national campaigns. What’s more important at this level is door-to-door word of mouth. I’m not real worried because I know I’m not going to get the same type of money as the others … (John) Clarkson and (Sam) Messina didn’t have a flashy campaign and it worked for them. Money doesn’t necessarily buy you victory in an election.”
So far, Reinhardt’s main campaign financier has been Supervisor John Clarkson, who donated $250 to his campaign. Clarkson, who has previously come out in support of the town’s new Reform Democrats group, said he feels Reinhardt “has the right approach for the Town Board” because he’s “very open to new ideas and respectful of others.”
“Jack (Cunningham) is welcome to run, but I think we need to move forward, which Bill will help us do,” he said. “And I think it’s time for a new direction.”
A good portion of Cunningham’s contributions have come through family and friends. Town and County Democratic Committee Chairman Matt Clyne also donated $500 to his campaign, and Sen. Neil Breslin’s campaign donated $150 as well.
In a past interview, Clyne said people generally like the former supervisor and “feel he is a victim of circumstances who deserves another shot at Town Board.”
In January, Martelle had hoped to be appointed to the Town Board seat vacated by Mark Jordan but Lenhardt was picked instead. Martelle said he is running to end a Democratic monopoly on the board.
“Over the last 10 years with the Democrats controlling the board, they raided the rainy day fund,” he said. “They have opted to keep taxes down and not cut spending. Keeping taxes low is good, but you can’t raid our savings.”
Martelle said his focus is on several goals targeted the town’s finances. He would like to see more of a balance between reducing costs and raising taxes, an update to the comprehensive plan and a further evaluation of the town’s aging infrastructure. Some of those objectives are already being pursued by the current administration, which he commended.
Martelle has an engineering background and is the senior aviation planner and project manager for US Aviation. He currently serves on the boards of School’s Out Inc., the local after school program, the Bethlehem Library and is third vice commander of the American Legion Post 1040 after serving on the Air Force.
So far, his main campaign contributor has been himself.
“Since last campaign I’ve retooled my strategy,” he said. “I’ll probably start doing serious fundraising now, up until the election. I’m starting to gear things up and get more prominent and vocal about getting people more excited about this campaign.”