by Thomas Breen The New Haven independent
Incumbent Democrat Justin Elicker’s mayoral reelection campaign raised another $17,248 in individual donations — plus $53,290 in public-financing matching funds and grants — between July and September.
In that same time period, Republican challenger Steve Orosco raised $13,555 in individual donations, including $1,575 from 14 different donors who attended a single Sept. 8 fundraiser in City Point.
In total, that means that Elicker has outraised Orosco $156,418 to $20,150 in individual contributions so far this municipal election season, not including Democracy Fund monies.
Those numbers and many more are included in state-required campaign finance disclosure statements that cover the period of July 1 to Sept. 30. Elicker’s and Orosco’s campaigns filed those third-quarter (Q3) reports on Oct. 10.
Click here and here to read those reports. And click here and here to read about the campaigns’ fundraising numbers in Q1 and Q2.
The general election is on Nov. 4; early voting began on Monday. Elicker, the Democratic and Working Families Party candidate, is seeking a fourth two-year term in office. Orosco has received the endorsements of the local Republican and Independent parties.
As with each of his previous runs for mayor — in 2013, 2019, 2021, and 2023 — Elicker is participating this year in the city’s public financing program, the Democracy Fund. That program, which dates back to 2007 and was most recently updated last year, attempts to limit the influence of special interests and encourage more candidates to participate in mayoral races by capping the top amount of individual contributions at $400 apiece. Orosco is not participating in the Democracy Fund, allowing him to raise $1,000 apiece.
According to Elicker’s third-quarter report, between July and September, the incumbent mayor raised $17,248 in individual contributions. He also received $28,290 in Democracy Fund matching funds as well as a $25,000 Democracy Fund grant.
Elicker qualified for the $25,000 grant because Orosco raised more than $5,000 for his own campaign, thereby triggering the Democracy Fund ordinance’s “contested election” clause. Elicker also qualified for Democracy Fund matching dollars because he raised at least 200 contributions from registered New Haven voters who have given between $5 and $400 apiece. The Democracy Fund matches qualifying contributions at a rate of two-to-one up to $35. That means that Elicker was eligible to receive a total of $70 for every $35 he raised from New Haven donors who gave more than $5 and less than $400 in total.
During that same time period, Elicker’s campaign spent $34,041.64, leaving it with a balance of $122,006.37 on hand.
Orosco’s campaign, meanwhile, raised $13,555 in individual contributions and spent a total of $14,729.96 last quarter, leaving it with a balance of $2,645.64 on hand.
Orosco raised a total of $1,575 from 14 different donors at a Sept. 8 fundraising event held at the Pequonnock Yacht Club in City Point, according to the campaign finance report. Those donations included $50 from Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Fazio, $100 from former Hartford-area congressional candidate Amy Chai, and $250 from former statewide Republican candidate Dominic Rapini.