Campaign fundraising and spending in four local House of Delegates races shows some — but not all — incumbents with a significant financial edge over their challengers. It also shows some hard-fought primaries and looks ahead to some hard-fought general election contests.
We look at the races for the 5th, 49th, 52nd and 53rd districts. The figures cited here come from the candidates’ Primary Reports, covering April 1-May 24, and Second Quarter Reports, covering May 25-June 30. The next report covers July 1-Sept. 30.
5th District
Incumbent Dave Pethtel, D-Wetzel, again faces Republican Phillip Wiley, making his third attempt to unseat Pethtel. Neither had a primary opponent.
Pethtel opened the primary reporting period with $22,687.13 in his campaign account, raised $7,100 and earned $1.84 in interest. He spent $1,454.
In the second quarter, he raised another $3,650 and earned $1.14 in interest, but spent nothing. That left his balance at $31,986.11 to enter the next period. His totals for the whole year were $34,600.72 raised, just $2,624 spent.
Wiley’s opened with $425 and raised $150. He spent nothing.
In the second quarter he raised nothing and again spent nothing, leaving a balance of $575. His totals were $2,150 raised, $1,150 spent.
49th District
Former Delegate Mike Manypenny defeated fellow Democrat Brandon Antion in the primary to earn a rematch against House Minority Leader Amy Summers, who unseated Manypenny in 2014.
Summers entered the primary with $11,850 in her account. She raised $12,550 and spent $3,777.57.
In the second quarter, she raised another $2,750 and spent just $588, leaving a war chest of $22,784.43. Her totals for the year were $27,250 raised and $4,465.57 spent.
Manypenny tallied 1,497 votes, 71.39%. He opened with $4,501.09 and raised $1,785. He spent $1,596.73.
With the primary behind him, he raised another $1,269 in the second quarter and spent $863.12, leaving a balance about a quarter of Summers’, at $5,095.24. His totals were $7,604 raised and $2,508.76 spent.
Antion received 600 votes, 28.61%. He entered the primary period with $772.10 and raised nothing. He did give himself $675.57 in-kind to reimburse himself for campaign expenses. He spent that $675.57 in the same period.
Campaign lost, he raised and spent nothing in the second quarter, leaving a balance of $96.53. His totals were $1,605.24 raised and $678.90 spent.
52nd District
Incumbent Terri Sypolt, R-Preston, narrowly fended off three GOP challengers to face Democrat Junior JR Wolfe in November.
Sypolt’s closest rival was Justin Hough. She received 1,050 votes (33.46%) to Hough’s 1,026 (32.7%); that’s a 24-vote victory. In 2018, in a two-person primary, Sypolt edged Hough by 47 votes, 1,210 to 1,163.
Sypolt opened the primary period with $1,404.44 and raised $6,450; she also received $350 from two GOP delegates’ accounts. She spent $6,671.60 fending off her challengers.
In the second quarter, she raised $1,100, received $500 from another delegate and $100 in-kind. She spent $1,955.83,leaving a balance of $1,177.01. Her totals were $10,746.30 raised, $9,469.29 spent.
Hough opened with $2,812 and raised $5,248.32 plus $160 in-kind. Eight of his contributions came from union PACS that typically support Democrats — a product of teacher unions and their supporters targeting certain GOP candidates for their votes on education-related bills in the past few years.
Hough also donated $298.32 to his campaign account during the primary period and lent himself $3,572.90. He spent $5,962.40.
In the second quarter, in the days before the June 9 primary, he received another $4,625.28 — including three more contributions from union PACs and $125.28 from himself.
He spent $6,470.10,which included repaying his loan and donating $253.10 to charity to zero out his account. His totals were $12,945 raised and $16,358.50 spent.
Robert “Mac” McCrum, a former Preston school board member, came in third with 737 votes, 23.49%. He opened with $528.58 and gave his account $2,000. He spent $805.
In the second quarter he raised nothing and spent $185, which included three returned contributions. He also returned $1,538.58 to himself to zero out his account. His totals were $4,204.50 raised and spent.
Stormy Matlick took the last GOP spot, with 325 votes, 10.36%. She raised and spent nothing the entire season.
Democrat Wolfe opened with $361.46 and raised $2,075. He spent just $12.60.
In the second quarter he received just $1.04 and spent $578.96.leaving a balance of $1,845.94. His totals were $3,637.50 raised and $1,791.56 spent.
So while his overall money flow was significantly less than Sypolt’s, his ending balance stood $668.93 higher, as Sypolt had to burn through cash to win the primary against a better-funded challenger.
53rd District
Incumbent Buck Jennings will again face Democrat Cory Chase in November. Chase defeated fellow Democrat Candi Sisler in the primary to win a second shot.
In 2018, Jennings handily won a three-way general election, with 4,102 votes to Chase’s 2,363 and Libertarian Austin Zuchowski’s 428.
For this election, Chase is so far better funded.
Jennings opened the primary period with $581.10. He raised nothing and spent just $4. In the second quarter he again raised nothing and spent $262, leaving a balance of $315.10.
His totals were $593.10 raised, $278 spent.
In the primary, Chase tallied 1,135 votes, 56.78%. He opened with $373.66 and raised $4,900, plus $29 in-kind. He spent $665.71.
In the second quarter, he received another $1,806.44 and spent $972.82, leaving a balance of $5,441.97. His totals were $10,797.28 raised and $4,389.37 spent.
Sisler received 864 votes in the primary, 43.27%. She opened with $895.03 but raised and spent nothing during the two periods, leaving her post-campaign balance the same.
Her totals were $2,586.62 raised, $998.20 spent.
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