Sims puts campaign for state's top job into higher gear

By Beth Kaiman
Seattle Times staff reporter

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King County Executive Ron Sims, eager to make up fund-raising ground in the governor's race, paced the theater-in-the-round stage like a motivational speaker yesterday, promising supporters a campaign with "attitude" and proclaiming he possesses the "passion, courage and guts" needed for the state's highest office.

The $50-a-ticket breakfast at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center was billed as a campaign kickoff, though Sims announced his bid for the Democratic nomination months ago.

In truth, Sims and his advisers said, the event was intended more to cue the start of a new phase of the campaign — one in which the county executive will be traveling the state more and putting a new emphasis on bringing in cash.

"We need to make sure the entire state of Washington knows the man," Seattle real-estate investor and Sims adviser Ken Alhadeff told the crowd. "If we can't raise the dollars, we can't do it."

The campaign is trying to play catch-up to Attorney General Christine Gregoire, whose Democratic candidacy has picked up a number of endorsements and a lot of money — nearly $1.5 million.

Former state Supreme Court Justice Phil Talmadge has raised nearly $213,000 in his bid for the Democratic nomination for governor.

The Sims breakfast — which attracted donations from 2,000 supporters — and two other events yesterday were expected to yield $150,000, said Tim Hatley, campaign manager for Sims.

That would add to the nearly $536,000 Sims raised through the end of last month.

Sims' money drive coincides with a freeze on Gregoire's fund-raising efforts. State law does not permit state officials to raise money during a legislative session, or in the month before or after.

After the breakfast rally, Alhadeff said Sims has not been able to raise as much money as the campaign would like, in part, because Gregoire is better known statewide.
 
Alhadeff said Sims' polling indicates people will vote for an African American, but Alhadeff speculated that they might be holding back on donations because they think "it doesn't happen" that an African American could be elected governor. He expects that to change as Sims becomes more familiar to voters.

The only African American elected governor in the U.S. since Reconstruction was Virginia's L. Douglas Wilder, elected in 1989.

Beth Kaiman: 206-464-2441 or bkaiman@seattletimes.com

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