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By Damian Mann Mail Tribune October 26. 2014 12:16AM Bates-Dotterrer race leads state's campaign spending spree Political war chests are piling up unprecedented amounts of cash this election cycle, including more than $1 million amassed by Sen. Alan Bates and his challenger, Dave Dotterrer, in the most expensive legislative race in Oregon. Ashland Republican Dotterrer has brought in almost $700,000, outpacing his Medford Democratic opponent’s $400,000, according to the Oregon Secretary of State. Their combined haul is higher than the hotly contested Bates race in 2004 against GOP challenger Jim Wright, which brought in about $750,000. Republican leader Sen. Doug Whitsett of Klamath Falls said the 2004 race between Bates and Wright surprised everyone at the time because of the amount raised. “That was amazing and an absurdity, but here we’ve got five races that are doing that again,” he said. Whitsett, who is part of the Senate Republican leadership, said it’s been a moving target as he watches the dollars flow into other contested races, mostly in the northern part of the state. Sen. Betsy Close, R-Albany, and Democratic challenger Sarah Gelser have together amassed just shy of $1 million, according to the Secretary of State. Whitsett said he couldn’t predict which race would be the costliest by the time the election is over. “There’s still time to go,” he said. Sen. Bruce Starr, R-Hillsboro, and his Democratic opponent Chuck Riley have brought in more than $900,000. Sen. Peter Courtney, D-Salem, has been challenged by Republican Patti Milne in a race that has reported more than $600,000. But the Senate race coffers come up short compared with the governor’s race and three ballot measures, one that seeks to require labeling of food products containing genetically modified organisms, another second that would legalize marijuana use for those 21 years of age or older, and third that would allow open primaries. The totals raised in the local Senate race, campaigns for governor, marijuana legalization, open primaries and GMO labeling have hit $40 million, enough to settle a few legislative shortfall battles over the years. Whitsett said it’s too early to tell which candidate race will be the costliest, noting he’s particularly surprised at the amount of money flowing into the Courtney-Milne race. Courtney has been president of the Senate since 2003. Rep. Peter Buckley, D-Ashland, said the two closest races to watch are in the Senate, with Bates-Dotterrer and Close-Gelser. Democrats hold a 16-14 edge in numbers there; a swing of one seat would give Republicans equal power in the Senate and a swing of two seats would give them control. Democrats hold a 34-26 advantage in the House. “It’s absolutely mind-blowing for campaigns around the state how much money is coming in,” Buckley said. He said he’s even received more campaign donations than he expected, though he's considered to have a safe seat. Buckley has received almost $120,000 so far, while his Republican opponent, Medford resident Nick Card, has received $10,000.  The most contested issue race is the GMO labeling imitative, Ballot Measure 92, raising nearly $23 million statewide, not counting various other political action committees that have supported or opposed it with their own advertising or campaigning. The No On 92 committee raised more than $16 million, while the Vote Yes on 92 committee has raised about $6.6 million. OSPIRG Action has raised almost $350,000 to support Measure 92, according to the Secretary of State. Next highest totals come with Ballot Measure 91, the marijuana legalization initiative, at about $6 million, also not counting support from various PACs operating on their own. Supporters of Ballot Measure 91 have raised $6 million to persuade voters to let adult Oregonians use recreational marijuana. Most of the money has been raised by New Approach Oregon and the Yes On 91 campaigns. The No On 91 committee has received only $170,000. Ballot Measure 90, which would allow open primaries in Oregon, has hauled in almost $6 million, with a substantial amount coming from out of state, according to the Secretary of State. The Vote Yes on 90 group raised the most at $3.4 million, Open Primaries, another PAC in support of the measure, has brought in $1.7 million and Protect Our Vote, which opposes the measure, has $800,000. In 2010, Gov. John Kitzhaber and his Republican opponent Chris Dudley set a fundraising record at $15.4 million. Dudley alone generated $9.1 million in contributions. This time, the race between Kitzhaber and Rep. Dennis Richardson, R-Central Point, has brought in about $5.6 million. Kitzhaber has a sizable fund-raising advantage at $3.7 million, compared with Richardson’s $1.9 million. Most of the money received by high-profile campaigns pays for advertising on TV, radio, Internet and social media.  The Dotterrer campaign has been criticized for using negative ads against Bates, though Dotterrer supporters say their candidate is just describing Bates’ record on the issue. Bates says the barrage of money is concerning. “I hope that we’re not in the situation in the country where you can buy elections,” Bates said. Bates said that he fully expected to be outspent by his opponent because he won’t take money from groups that pressure him to endorse negative advertising. “We knew it would be an expensive race,” he said. “We thought we’d be outspent three to one.” Cathy Shaw, Bates’ campaign manager, said the Bates-Dotterrer election is definitely the most expensive candidate race that she can remember in Jackson County. Dotterrer didn’t return several phone calls seeking comment on the amount of money spent on the race. Both Bates and Dotterrer have poured money into political ads in the final weeks of the campaign, leaving Bates with a cash balance of $149,333 and Dotterrer’s account with $75,590, according to the Secretary of State's website on Friday. Bates came into the 2014 election season with an $85,000 fund balance from previous campaign activity, according to the Secretary of State, while Dotterrer had almost $4,000. The race is not only one of the most expensive in the state, it's also likely to be one of the closest. Dotterrer lost by just 282 votes out of about 50,000 cast in 2010. Chuck Heauser, chairman of the Jackson County Republican Central Committee, said he always thought the Dotterrer-Bates race would be expensive. “Frankly, I’m not surprised,” he said. “I know it’s been rated as a very high priority for the state.” He said the ballot measures in particular are getting a lot of funding from outside Oregon, and he’s not sure how well that will sit with voters. “There’s a lot of money coming in from out of state for Measure 90,” he said. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow on Twitter at @reporterdm.   http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20141026/NEWS/141029713 © 2015 Copyright © 1995-2011 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use Privacy Statement -->