$19.80 vs. $27.10

[Duppers]

Gubernatorial foes spent $46 million
Other races for statewide offices cost $14 million

BY PAMELA STALLSMITH
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Dec 9, 2005

Democrat Timothy M. Kaine spent about $19.80 a vote in his successful bid for governor, while Republican Jerry W. Kilgore shelled out $27.10 per ballot in his losing bid in the state's most expensive race for the Executive Mansion.

Kaine, currently the lieutenant governor, spent more than $20.3 million, according to the Virginia Public Access Project and reports filed yesterday with the State Board of Elections. Kaine captured 1,025,942 votes, besting Kilgore by about 6 percentage points.

Kilgore, the former attorney general, spent at least $24.7 million, an all-time record for a gubernatorial candidate in Virginia. He claimed 912,327 votes in the Nov. 8 election.

Kilgore brought in almost twice as much money as Kaine during the latest reporting period, between Oct. 27 and Dec. 1, which includes the campaign's final stretch and immediate aftermath. The Republican collected more than $3.2 million, the Democrat nearly $1.7 million.

Independent H. Russell Potts Jr. of Winchester, a Republican state senator, spent just over $1.2 million and reported debts of $339,125.

He won 43,953 votes, or 2.2 percent of all ballots cast.

Spending soared to new heights in this year's gubernatorial race -- about $46 million for the three campaigns combined. That amount roughly equals the total cost of building Richmond's four newest schools.

Kaine became the second gubernatorial victor to break the million-vote barrier, which Republican George Allen -- now a U.S. senator -- passed in his successful 1993 election.

Spokeswoman Delacey Skinner said Kaine's campaign was pleased with its money raising.

"Our goal all along was to get the message out about Tim Kaine's vision for Virginia," she said, adding "that is what we succeeded in doing."

The lower-ticket races also shattered records.

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