Which City Council Candidate is Getting All the Campaign Cash?

The money is flowing in for Concord City Council Incumbent Dan Helix. The city councilman running for a another term — his second, this time around, but fourth in total — has raised $72,599 since Aug. 1, the Contra Costa Times reports. That's more than $50,000 ahead of any of the 11 other candidates.

Helix, who first served on the council in 1968 and again in 2010, told the Times that the cash flow comes from "having friends of many years." He lists his accomplishments as a member of the city council on his website, including helping balance the budget, keep the police department intact, creating Concord's anti-truancy ordinance and being involved in the decisions surrounding the Naval Weapons Station.

Related: Do you have a question for the 11 city council candidates? Submit it here and Patch will seek answers.

According to finance reports beginning July 1 and ending Sept. 30, the most generous givers to the Helix campaign were the owners and employees of Concord Disposal Service, with donations totalling $7,600. Concord Disposal has long held a contract with the city for disposal services.

The candidate with the second highest campaign pot was Planning Commissioner Tim McGallian, who now has a total of $20,505. His donors also include the Concord Disposal Service owners, the Garaventa family, who contributed $4,000. 

The Concord Police Officer Association has endorsed Helix and McGallian and donated $1,500 to each candidate.

According to the financial reports analysed by the Times, the other city council candidates stand as follows:

• Carol Longshore: $7,050
• Ed Birsan: $6,353
• Terry Kremin: $775
• Alany Helmantoler: $300
• Harmesh Kumar: $100
• Suzanne Davis-Lucey reported no contributions.
• Robert David Camacho and Marnie Sheehan-Carter did not submit financial reports to the City Clerk's office.

Birsan and Kumar are funding their own campaigns, with running totals of $68,941 in expenditures for Birsan and $38,353 for Kumar. Some of the money spent has come from a carry-over from previous campaigns, according to the two candidates.