WV GOP kicking "Ass" in fund raising

State Democrats lag far behind in fund raising

With 675,305 registered Democrats in the state and only 353,437 Republicans in the state, the fund raising shows Republicans are on the right side of the issues that matter to West Virginians.

WV Republican Party Individual Contributions: $95,752
WV Democrat Party Individual Contributions: $66,434
(FEC filings through July 31, 2009)

The WV GOP is raising 28 cents per every Republican in the state, while state Democrats are only raising 10 cents for every Democrat in the state.

Out numbered nearly 2 to 1 in voter registration in the state, but people are realizing that the Democrat Party is more often siding more with Liberal San Francisco Democrat Nancy Pelosi than the people of our own state, and they don't like it.

WV GOP Near Top In Fund Raising

PRESS RELEASE
August 3rd, 2009

For Immediate Release
Contact: Marti Riggall
West Virginia Republican Party


WV GOP Near Top In Fund Raising
most neighboring states lag behind

Charleston, WV - August 3, 2009 - Despite erroneous reports in the media that the West Virginia Republican Party is having trouble raising money the facts are quite different. Currently the WV GOP ranks second among our neighbors in fund raising efforts per individual. "People sometimes forget we are a small state when looking at the fund raising numbers. You must compare apples to apples," said State Party Chairman Doug McKinney, "West Virginia Republicans are stepping up with contributions at a higher rate than our neighboring states."

	Total Individual Contributions to the State Party	Number of Republicans in the State	Average Contribution per Republican
Kentucky	$286,078	1,066,789	$0.27
Maryland	$128,575	909,848	$0.14
Ohio*	$540,600	3,900,000	$0.14
Pennsylvania	$479,182	3,168,414	$0.15
Virginia**	$605,505	2,500,000	$0.24
West Virginia	$83,210	347,760	$0.24
* Estimate of Republicans by Ohio GOP
** Estimate of Republicans by Virginia GOP

According to Federal Election Commission filings the West Virginia Democratic Party has only raised $56,820 as compared to the West Virginia GOP's $90,062 in the same time frame, Democrats out number Republicans in the state nearly 2 to1. Chairman McKinney remarked, "We are out fund raising the Democrats in West Virginia by 3 to 1 on an individual basis. The people know which party can turn the economy around and they are sending their money our way."

Fund raising efforts are on going and with new programs in the works. The state party is looking forward to taking the lead in individual contributions away from Kentucky in the near future.

GOP Fundraising Outpaces Democrats in 2009 and Ted Kennedy's Mockery of West Virginia

Sunday, the Cumberland Times-News ran an Associated Press story coming out of West Virginia. The title claimed that the Democratic Party had raised more money than state Republicans, no shock there. It also spotlighted many of the factional divisions plaguing the party this year.

It included a curious nugget of information. Per voter, the West Virginia Republican Party took in over twice as much money as the Democrats. When one breaks down the fund raising, the WVGOP took in almost twenty-five cents per registered Republican voter while the Democrats only took in about ten cents per registered Democrat.

Now this is not yet cause to pop open the champagne, bang on the piano, and sing and dance. Happy days are still not here again. However, this must be recognized as progress. One more step forward in a long journey. Not too long ago a huge debt hung over the head of the party. In 2009 the fund raising numbers have accomplished this even in the middle of a recession and continuing intraparty strife. It shows a Republican base that is still smaller than the Ruling Party, but much more mobilized. The WVGOP has taken some advantage of the national political turn against Obama, Reid, Pelosi, and the lefties.

Life provides few magic bullets. Like a coach taking hold of a college football team accustomed to years of losing records, it takes time to construct a program. We have seen strong progress over the last few years as the WVGOP got its house in order. Now it is prepared to build upon a stronger foundation and get back to the priority of electing Republicans to office.

Many kudos to those that have been directly involved in West Virginia Republican fund raising. Stay innovative and keep up the good work. We'll have West Virginia seeing red if we keep at it.

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I don't think anyone should be surprised at this. Ted Kennedy, the all wise moral compass of the liberals, was recorded at least once ridiculing West Virginia. Theodore White in his Making of the President 1968 recalled how at a party full of liberals at Robert Kennedy's house, the moral compass himself indulged in some insulting mimicry of the Southern West Virginia political bosses who enabled his brother to seize the primary in 1960.

We should have learned the lesson a long time ago, through this, through Bill Clinton aides tossing the phrase "trailer trash" around at Paula Jones, that elite liberals in Washington tend to see people like us as sources of votes and ridicule and not much else.

WVGOP matches neighboring states in cash position

A few people within the West Virginia Republican party have been talking about the cash position of the state GOP. I have been hearing from people that we are in great shape and some that we are in horrible shape. Interestingly one of the people that told me just how bad things said, “You should check out the FEC reports for all the states surrounding us... like Ohio.” I did just that and was pleasantly surprised at what I found.

Since cash on hand it what people seemed to be most concerned with, that is what I compared so their question could be addressed directly. Since all off the surrounding states are much larger in population I broke it down as compared to cash per proportion for each state resident. That way we are comparing things on an equal footing.

	Cash On Hand *	State Population **	Cash per Person
Kentucky	$165,662.00†	4,041,769	$0.04
Maryland	$1,609.00	5,296,486	$0.00√
Ohio	$1,536,155.00	11,353,140	$0.14
Pennsylvania	$1,570,548.00	12,281,054	$0.13
Virginia	$211,198.00	7,078,515	$0.03
West Virginia	$106,946.00‡	1,808,344	$0.06

Source of Data: * Federal Election Commission Filings, ** US Census Bureau, † 2008 data, 2009 unavailable, ‡ Data provided by WVGOP dated 6/12/2009, √ Less than one cent.

This is where we rank when compared to our neighboring states:
#1 Ohio
#2 Pennsylvania
#3 West Virginia
#4 Kentucky
#5 Virginia
#6 Maryland

Another interesting bit of information you can look at. In 2006 the WVGOP was in debt $141,485. Had we started with no debt in 2006 and raised the same amount of money and maintained the same fiscal discipline we would have $248,431.89 in the state account. On a cash per person basis that would give us $0.14, the same as Ohio. We would be tied for first place.

We must remember we are a small state and strive to be the best. Our fundraising efforts are on par with our bigger neighbors when we compare things on an equal footing, but we can always strive to do better. Let’s all give what we can to the state GOP to make it easier to win seats in the 2010 election.

The Party of Business

The party of business should look to business as a model in building its efforts over the next two years.

Money is the lifeblood of a political party. Grass roots volunteers may be the most important asset a candidate or party has, but money is vital. Last summer even getting from point A to point B posed a challenge to many good candidates. The West Virginia Republican Party took a giant step by retiring its debt last year. Now it must move forward from that foundation.

Fund raising simply cannot boil down to "We're Republicans, you are Republicans, you should donate because we all believe the same thing and have the same goals." When you purchase a product for $1,000 or even $100, you put thought into that purchase. Is it good for me? Will it work? Will I get the most for my money? Businesses sell to self-interest. Charities appeal to the heart and sense of duty. Political parties often fall somewhere in between. State Republicans should move farther in the direction of the business model when trying to convince donors to give.

It's not so much the ideology that needs sold. We are "Republicans for a Reason." Certainly we need to continually reshape and refine our message as the times change and generations reprioritize, but there are guiding principles that remain the same. To get people to believe in the party, they must be sold on the people and the potential for action. What will the GOP do differently in two or four years? What vision is being shaped this year to carry us forward and win elections? How are we going to close the registration gap? Before most people write a meaningful check, they want answers to those questions. The February winter meetings should be a strong indicator of what the party's vision will be going ahead towards 2010.