The latest round of campaign finance reports filed by Shawano County sheriff’s candidates show incumbent Randy Wright catching up to within a few hundred dollars of what his opponent Adam Bieber has spent so far.
Bieber, a Shawano police officer, is challenging Wright for the Republican nomination in Tuesday’s primary.
Bieber’s financial report shows he has spent $4,506 on his campaign, out of $4,575 in contributions, leaving him with about $69 as of July 28, the end of the second reporting period.
Wright has spent $4,157 out of $4,474 taken in, leaving a balance of $317.
At the end of the first financial reporting period, which covered April through June, Bieber was outspending Wright by more than $700.
Both candidates roughly doubled their spending over the next four weeks.
According to his report, Wright has put more than $2,000 of his own money into the campaign, while Bieber made self-donations totaling $450.
Bieber also received donations from two sitting County Board members. District 4 Supervisor Michael McClelland contributed $400 and District 1 Supervisor Deb Noffke contributed $100.
The biggest expense for both candidates had been yard signs and materials during the first reporting period, but both ramped up spending on radio and print advertising in July.
Wright spent more than $1,800 for ads in area newspapers and on the radio, while Bieber spent just over $1,400.
Absent from Bieber’s first financial report was any accounting of T-shirts and campaign decals, even though both were apparently available at least as far back as May 14, when Bieber posted photos of both on his campaign Facebook page, along with links to Bolin’s Speedy T’s and DC Vinyl and Graphics.
The Bieber for Sheriff decal was the first cover photo posted on Bieber’s campaign Facebook page when it launched on May 8.
The T-shirts caused a minor controversy at a May 28 County Board meeting, when Noffke attended the meeting wearing one of the shirts and wore it during an official County Board portrait photo taken that same day.
The photo was altered to remove the “Bieber for Sheriff” message.
County rules prohibit employees, including supervisors, from political activity on county time.
McClelland also wore a Bieber T-shirt at a subsequent County Board meeting, but wore a jacket over it after he was informed by the corporation counsel that it was inappropriate.
Bieber has previously said the T-shirts were being offered by a private company, not by his campaign.
“I had no relationship with them,” Bieber said. “That was something they were doing.”
Government Accountability Board rules only require a candidate to claim an in-kind donation if there is some coordination between the candidate and the contributor.
Bieber’s latest financial report shows that his campaign did purchase Bieber T-shirts on July 1 for $190.