WORCESTER – With less than two weeks left until Worcester’s Nov. 7 election, mayoral candidates are making their final push to get their name and message in front of voters by applying the campaign funds they’ve raised.
In total, the mayoral candidates have pulled in nearly $120,000 this year, according to the data available from the Office of Campaign and Political Finance.
Incumbent Mayor Joseph Petty has raised the most at nearly $56,000, according to data from the OCPF. Councilor At-Large Khrystian King is next at $40,000, followed by Guillermo Creamer at $12,500 and Donna Colorio at $9,600. Bill Coleman hasn’t raised any money.
Who has contributed to Petty’s campaign?
More than 25 individuals contributed $1,000 to Petty’s campaign, including:
- Chip Norton, the president of Franklin Realty Advisors Inc.
- Edward Augustus Jr., former Worcester city manager and current Massachusetts secretary of housing and livable communities
- David Fontaine, the owner of Fontaine Brothers Inc.
- Cliff Rucker, a real estate developer and owner of the Worcester Railers
- Craig Blais, president of Worcester Business Development Corporation
- Patrick Lee, founder and owner of Trinity Financial
- Aaron, Barry and Janet Krock (each made their own $1,000 contribution)
- Daniel Kelley, president of Kelley & Ryan Associates
- David Greaney, CEO of Synergy
Several unions made $500 contributions to the mayor’s campaign, including:
- Painters District Council 35
- UBC & JA Local 336
- Central Mass AFL-CIO
- IBEW Local 2325
- Ironworkers Union Local 7
- Local 1000
- MA & Northern New England Laborers
- North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters
Petty received a $50 donation from fellow mayoral candidate Creamer, as well as $50 from fellow council candidate Jenny Pacillo, and $100 each from Candy Mero-Carlson and Jose Rivera.
Who has contributed to King’s campaign?
Kathryn Krock and Dulce Williams, an event manager for Capers Catering, are King’s highest donors, each contributing $2,000.
$1,000 donors to King’s campaign include:
- Holmes Wilson, a software developer
- Nathan Sabo, head of the Canal District Neighborhood Association and executive with Cushman & Wakefield
- Jesus Suarez, CEO of Renaissance Medical Group
Several politicians donated to King’s campaign. School Committee member Susan Coghlin Mailman gave $700, District 5 Councilor Etel Haxhiaj $250, School Committee member Jermoh Kamara $50, and council candidates Nelly Medina, Maydee Morales and Domenica Perrone between $100 and $150 each. Phil Palmieri, who unsuccessfully ran for the District 2 seat this election, donated $275.
King serves as an executive on SEIU Local’s 509 DCF Chapter and subsequently received several $500 contributions from unions. In addition to his own, King received contributions from:
- The National Association of Social Workers
- North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters
- Painters District Council 35
- SEIU 32 BJ United ADF
- UBC & JA Local 336
Who donated to Creamer and Colorio?
Petty and King’s competitors have raised significantly less this year. Creamer has brought in $12,500 and Colorio $9,600, while Coleman hasn’t raised any money.
Colorio does have a significant amount of cash on hand, over $30,000, thanks to fundraising leftover from previous years, which is more cash on hand than King’s $26,000-plus, and less than Petty’s more than $34,000. Creamer has only $542 in cash on hand, according to OCPF data.
Creamer received just one $1,000 donation from James Umphrey, a real estate developer for Kelleher & Sadowsky.
Some of his top contributors include:
- Douglas Arbetter, a statistician for AstraZeneca, who donated $790
- John Hornor, who is listed as not employed, contributed $500
- Dixie Hougen, who is listed as not employed, contributed $500
- Megan Hull, a consultant, contributed $500
- Sarah Poggi, a physician, contributed $500
Fellow council candidate Perrone contributed $25 to Creamer. Edson Montero, who made an unsuccessful run for the District 5 council, also contributed $25.
Based on the most recent OCPF data, it doesn’t appear that Creamer has received any contributions from unions.
Colorio’s top contributor this year is Cheryl Shea, the owner of Network Insurance. Shea donated $1,000. Colorio’s other top contributors gave $500 to the councilor’s campaign, including:
- Steven Christy, the president of Lei Corporation
- Vanessa Costa, principal and co-founder of Advantage Benefits Group
- Kimberly Kane, owner of Overhead Door Company
- Walter Weld, who is retired
- Hassan Yatim COO of Yatco Energy and CEO of the Massachusetts Pirates.
Two unions contributed to Colorio’s campaign:
- MA & Northern New England Laborers, which contributed $500
- Central Mass AFL-CIO, which contributed $250
Worcester residents have until Oct. 28 to register to vote in the municipal election, the same day early in-person voting starts.
Kiernan Dunlop is an award-winning journalist who has spent the past five years reporting in Worcester, New Bedford and Antigua and Barbuda. She’s been published in Bloomberg, USA Today, Canary Media, MassLive, and the New Bedford Standard Times, among other outlets. She can be contacted at kdunlop@theworcesterguardian.org
