WHITE ROCK — The White Rock Coalition spent nearly $78,000 in the 2014 municipal election that saw four of its six candidates elected.
The figure came out of election expenses released this week following last falls election, as each candidate is required by law to disclose any and all campaign finances.
The coalition was the only group to run as a team in the election, with Megan Knight, Bill Lawrence, Grant Meyer and Lynne Sinclair proving successful in their bids. Fellow coalition members Doug Hart and Cliff Annable were not elected, with independents Dave Chesney and Helen Fathers rounding out the six councillor positions.
In terms of campaign contributors, the coalition’s donors were a mix of private and commercial, with $19,064 coming from individuals and $44,823 coming from corporations. The non-profit Semiahmoo Volunteer Community also donated $1,038 while Forge Properties was the largest contributor to the coalition’s campaign with $6,500. Gateway Casinos also donated $974 to the coalition as a whole, as well as $750 to Annable, Lawrence and Meyer individually.
For independents, Chesney spent $5,010 to be elected while Fathers spent $3,779. Fathers was also the top vote-earner for councillors at 2,456 votes, while Meyer was close behind with 2,421.
Runner-up and first-time candidate Dennis Lypka spent $10,078 in his pursuit of a position at the council table. Lypka, who missed being elected by 144 votes, had the highest expenses of all 11 independent councillor candidates.
Al Campbell spent $5,658 in his unsuccessful bid at re-election, and former councillor Margaret Woods spent $7,739 on her campaign.
In the mayoral race, incumbent Wayne Baldwin spent $10,696 for his successful re-election, with his contributors also being a mix of individual and commercial. Baldwin’s largest donors were Stewart Peddemors Real Estate Corporation with $2,500 and the Avra Development Corp. at $1,500.
Baldwin’s lone competitor, first-time candidate David Bradshaw, spent $6,786 in his run at the mayor’s chair with his biggest contribution coming from his own operation, DWB Workers’ Advocacy Inc. at $4,000.
To view the full list of campaign contributions, go to contributions.electionsbc.gov.bc.ca/pcs.
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