Former Leon High principal Rocky Hanna turned some heads with his first campaign report. Hanna, who has not run for political office before, reported that he raised $105,000 during August. Sources that TR talked to were surprised at the amount he reported.
“You knew Jackie and Scott would raise a lot of money. This means that all three will be well armed to get their message out,” said one source.
A closer look at Hanna’s report reveals that Hanna loaned his campaign $25,000. Removing that amount means he raised approximately $80,000 from 201 donations. The average donation for Hanna was approximately $400.
Campaign manager, Nick Quinton said, “We are ecstatic about where we are one month into the campaign. Our fundraising numbers show Rocky’s supporters are energized and ready for him to be superintendent of our school system.”
Notably absent from Hanna’s donor list are contractors who have done work for the Leon County School Board. Hanna, who has been in the news for over a year with his concerns over the process of awarding contracts at the Leon County School Board, only lists one donation from a construction business.
The report also lists over $40,000 in donations from people and businesses in Georgia and Nevada. Hanna told TR that this money is from friends and family and not from any businesses that would do work for the School Board.
“The best part of this is that retired teachers, retired administrators, and my family are helping us for the right reasons”, said Hanna.
The most famous donor on the list is US Congresswoman Gwen Graham who is a former Leon County School Board employee. She donated $1,000.
Rocky Hanna Raises $105,000, Gwen Graham Donates $1,000 added by Staff on
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Its is time for change in Tallahassee, as concern business owner,Pons did nothing for Black business and will continues to backslide when it comes to blacks in Leon co. Dont be fooled once again!!!
Rocky you have my vote and I will work for you to encourage other to do the same.
Graham’s vote for the pipeline put her on my s**t list; her support for Hanna gets her off.
The fact it takes hundreds of thousands of dollars to run for a local position is what keeps many good people out of office. There has to be a better way of electing people. Situations such as Mr. Hanna, who is rejecting special interest money, and Mr. Brat in Virginia, who defeated Eric Cantor despite being outspent like 10:1, are the very rare exceptions to the rule.
One interesting proposal is that of an anonymous candidate with a contract. Qualified candidates are identified by a number, no party affiliation is listed, they write their own contract as to what they will do if elected, and they could even include how many terms they intend to serve. Should they violate the contract, they can be terminated from office and a replacement elected. This would serve to turn elections from popularity contests to ones where voters actually had to read and research and could easily hold politicians accountable. That is why an idea such as this one will never fly in our short-attention span society.
Campaign funding is another issue that needs resolution.