Former Ag. Secretary Wolff fundraising totals seven times amount of other 9th district Democrats

Only one of the candidates seeking the Democratic nomination in Pennsylvania’s 9^th district has held public office – and that might explain his vast fundraising lead in the primary.

Denny Wolff, a farmer from Columbia County, was the state’s agriculture secretary former Gov. Ed Rendell, has raised a total of $328,000.

Wolff’s put in $152,000 of his own money. After that, fellow farmers and agriculture industry PAC’s are his largest source of campaign funds.

Laura Quick, a teacher-turned UPS driver who’s been sidelined with a chronic back injury, has received $20,000 – nearly one quarter of which has been donated in amounts of $200 or less, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

Dentist Gary Wegman reported $27,000 received – including $22,400 from the candidate himself.

 

Ag’s the word for Wolff

Wolff has contributed $152,000 of his own money, of $328,000 total raised as of April 25, according to FEC filings.

Wolff’s family contributed another $13,500 and committed another $10,000 for the general election.

But the biggest source of outside support came from the framing and agriculture industry, with at least $55,000 contributed so far. That includes:

• $25,200 from industry PACS, including John Deere, Land O’Lakes, American Crystal Sugar Company, Croplife America, Farm and Ranch Land Protection and Dairy Farmers of America
• $2,000 from industry lobbyist Randall Russell
• $24,200 from Pennsylvania farmers, including $2,700 each from Boyd Station soybean processing facility owner Bryan Cotner, and former Pennsylvania Farm Bureau President Carl T. Shaffer
• $2,000 from Patrick Brennan, director of USDA Rural Development in New York, and his consultancy
• $500 from Delaware’s former agriculture secretary, Mike Scuse
• $500 from Krista Harden, currently chief sustainability officer at DuPont and formerly deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Other contributions included:

• $8,500 from PACs for plumbing, pipefitting, transportation and asbestos workers’ unions
• $4,000 from S.R. Wodjak & Associates and president Steve Crawford, Rendell’s chief of staff
• $2,000 from Katie McGinty’s senate campaign
• $250 from Columbia County Commissioner Rich Ridgway.

Quick relying on teamsters

Quick’s working with the least money of all candidates in both primaries in the ninth, having raised $20,000 through April 25.

Her top funding sources are:

• $5,250 from five teamster PACs, field reps and former colleagues at UPS
• $2,700 from Lehigh County doctor Michael Pipestone
• $2,000 from a campaign fund for Josh Brady, who ran for mayor of Lebanon and has been working for Quick’s campaign
• $1,200 of her own money.

 

Wegman with $27K

Wegman received about $4,000 in contributions from outside sources, mainly other professionals in the Reading area, including a periodontist, attorney and architect.