The candidates who vied to represent the eastside district on El Paso’s City Council devoted months to campaigning and spent a combined total of $52,639.05 in the 4-way contest.
Unfortunately, for two of the candidates, the time and money spent was not enough.
But for the remaining two contenders, Jimmy Suerken and Rachel Quintana, the fight has gone into extended rounds, which means additional time needs to be spent on the campaign trail. And that, in turn, means more money needs to be shelled out.
Jimmy Suerken led the pack on the May 12 election night, earning 35.68 percent of the vote, or 946 actual votes.
Rachel Quintana was close behind him, ranking 2nd with 33.87 percent of the vote, which equates to 898 actual votes.
[A complete break-down of voting numbers and statistics can be viewed on the County Elections Department homepage.]
But for each of those votes, the candidates each spent a far different amount of money, according to campaign finance reports filed with the City Clerk’s Office.
Throughout the campaign, Suerken out-fundraised his opponents, raking in a total of $37,451.99. Of that money, he spent $33,661.68.
Based on this amount, and divided by the number of votes he received in the election, Suerken spent a total of $35.58 for each vote in his favor.
Quintana, just as she ranked in the vote count, also ranked 2nd in fundraising and spending, bringing in a total of $8,375 and spending $7.537.47.
And for each vote that went her way, Quintana spent $8.39.
Assuming that the voting numbers stayed the same, meaning the exact same people who voted on May 12 turn out to vote on June 9, the candidates will have to spend thousands of dollars more to come out on top.
In order to win, a candidate must garner 50 percent of the vote, plus one vote. So, with 2,651 people voting on election night, the winning would have to get 1,326 votes before proceeding to his or her City Hall office.
For Suerken to win, and if the same group of voters turn out for June 9 run-off election, he would have to keep every single person that voted him last month, and get an additional 380 voters to swing his way.
Relying upon the cost-per-vote from the general election, Suerken would have to spend an additional $13,520.40 to win the race.
A Quintana victory would be based on the same strategy of keeping all the votes she won on May 12. In addition to those, Quintana would have to pick up 428 more votes in order for her to emerge triumphant.
Based on Quintana’s bargain cost-per-vote rate of $8.39 in the last race, she would have to spend an additional $3,590.42for the election to go her way.
And, according to filings posted today on the City Clerk’s website, Quintana has nearly doubled that amount.
In her run-off race efforts, Quintana has raised a total of $10,238 and spent $6,541.97.
Suerken's reports show that he has raised $9,675.00 so far and has spent $8,215.38 during the run-off.
Ultimately, after all is said and spent, it is the voters who in one short week’s time will have the final say as to who has truly earned their vote.
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Rene Leon can be contacted at rene@newspapertree.com
More Information: Click here to view campaign finance reports for all candidates.
