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Municipal election expenses: Bigger, Cacciotti ran deficits during mayoral race

Financial documents filed with city also show Kirwan spent just $129.53 to get re-eelcted

Mayor Brian Bigger and former mayoral candidate Cody Cacciotti ran campaign deficits, according to documents filed with the city ahead of the Dec. 31 deadline.

Candidates for municipal office in last October's election have to file financial statements with Greater Sudbury by March 29 of this year, unless they filed documents before the end of 2018 stating they spent more money than they took in. That allows candidates to extend the deadline to June 30.

Spending for mayoral candidates is capped at $7,500, plus 85 cents for every eligible voter in the city, while council candidates can spend $5,000, plus the 85 cents per voter in their ward. That puts mayoral candidates over the $100,000 mark, while councillor candidates are in the $12,500-$14,500 range, depending on the size of the ward. 

While the remaining candidates have until the end of March to submit their financial statements, several council candidates have already done so. 

By far the lowest spending was Ward 5 Coun. Bob Kirwan, who received no donations and spent just $129.53 of his own money on his successful re-election campaign. Ward 12 Coun. Joscelyne Landry-Altmann spent $7,150 on her re-election. That amount includes $4,750 of her own money, $1,500 in contributions and $900 in signs she reused from the 2014 campaign.

Ward 8 Coun. Al Sizer raised $6,859.44, mostly of his own money, but he had $700 in donations, and had a surplus of around $400. Ward 10 Coun. Fern Cormier raised $6,895.54 and spent $5,802.24, leaving him with a $1,093.30 surplus. 
He received four donations totalling $1,550, and funded the rest himself.

When campaigns run a surplus, candidates can withdraw the amount they or their spouse donated themselves. Otherswise, the money must be turned over to the city clerk and becomes the property of the city. Individual contributions other than from the candidate are capped at $1,200. Individuals can donate to multiple candidates, but can't donate more than a total of $5,000 in any one municipality. Corporate and anonymous contributions are illegal.

Of the candidates for council who didn't win but have filed their statements, Justin Pappano spent the most in his unsuccessful bid to unseat Mark Signoretti in Ward 1. Pappano spent $4,250 on his campaign, managing to raise $2,950 from six donors. 

Notable among those donors is Dario Zulich, owner of the Sudbury Wolves and the developer behind the Kingsway Entertainment District, which Signoretti bitterly opposes. Zulich gave Pappano $400.

John Lindsay, who lost the race in Ward 11, had $4,000 to spend on his campaign, receiving no donations and paying the costs from his own pocket. He ended up with a surplus of $2,100.79. On the low end, Jessica Bertand spent just $405.78 on her unsuccessful bid to be councillor in Ward 4.

A full list of candidates who have filed, their expenses, income and who donated to their campaigns can be found on the city's website.


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Darren MacDonald

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