Techies, developers fuel 8th Congressional District race

By Warren Cornwall
Seattle Times Eastside bureau

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As candidates in the 8th Congressional District hunt for early contributions to fuel their campaigns, people with connections to the technology industry have proved the most generous to Democrats, while those with real-estate or development interests have been the Republicans' most lucrative source.

The split reflects a familiar difference in ideological leanings between people in the two industries, and underscores the wealth and political heft people from those industries have in this suburban district.

On the Republican side, people with close connections to the development world gave at least $56,000 to the four Republican candidates as of March 31, which is the most recent information available. Democrats got less than $10,000.

Democrats, meanwhile, have collected about $56,000 from people tied to the technology world. Most of that went to Alex Alben, once an executive with RealNetworks. Republicans got roughly $6,500.

Only the fishing industry approached similar giving levels, with at least $41,000 in donations to Republican candidate Diane Tebelius, a former federal prosecutor.

These early patterns may not hold as the September primary election approaches and candidates expand their search for donations. Early donors are often previously associated with the candidate or campaign staffers, such as family members or past colleagues. Few political-action committees — a common vehicle for donations by ideological or corporate interest groups — have given money yet in the race.

Big givers to 8th District race Technology: People with ties to tech companies have given at least $56,000 to Democrats, mainly to former RealNetworks executive Alex Alben. Real estate and development: This group has given at least $56,000 to Republicans, $23,000 of that to King County Sheriff Dave Reichert. Fishing industry: The group, facing possible changes in federal regulations, has given at least $41,000 to Republican candidate Diane Tebelius. Source: Dwight L. Morris and Associates. Totals are as of March 31.

But the split between techies and builders can be seen around the state.

In 2000, the last year with a presidential election and a Senate race, Washington Democrats seeking federal office garnered 71 percent of the high-tech contributions, according to analysis by Dwight L. Morris and Associates, a private campaign finance consulting firm in Virginia.

There are exceptions to the trend. Craig McCaw, the wireless-phone magnate, gave $2,000 to King County Sheriff Dave Reichert, a Republican candidate. McCaw was among a group of high-tech executives who recently gathered in Seattle to support the Bush campaign.

Matt Loschen, a Microsoft group manager and major supporter of Democratic causes, gave $2,000 to Alben's campaign after hearing him speak about the importance of environmental protections, and about his concerns regarding the handling of the Iraq war.

"Just his opposition to Bush's stand on the environment makes it such a breath of fresh air," Loschen said.

In other cases, it was Alben's association with the computer world that opened doors for him.

"He called me early on and sought out my support largely because of our mutual connections in the technology industry," said Paul Brainerd, founder of Aldus Corp., who gave Alben $2,000.

While donations from individual tech workers continue to favor Democrats, giving from the computer industry has become more bipartisan in recent years as companies seek to gain allies in Washington, D.C., Morris said.

Republican congressional candidates in the 8th District, however, drew more support from people like Bill Conner, the retired founder of the Eastside development company Conner Homes.

Conner, who has put thousands of dollars into Republican causes, said Republicans are often more sympathetic to building-industry concerns such as government regulations of land use.

"The regulatory climate is certainly a big issue with any builder and developer," said Conner, who gave $2,000 to Reichert's campaign.

It also helps that Bruce Boram is working on Reichert's campaign, Conner said. Boram is executive director of United for Washington, a state political-action committee for businesses. Conner sits on the group's board of directors, along with several other Eastside development leaders.

Reichert has been the chief Republican beneficiary of development industry largesse, with more than $23,000.

Tebelius, meanwhile, raised nearly a quarter of her money from people tied to the commercial fishing industry.

She credited her pro-business stance, including a push for streamlined regulations, as a main reason for the support.

"I know a lot of maritime lawyers and I know people in that industry. I think that what's happening is we have a small-business message and I think they are responding to that," she said.

Much of those contributions come from smaller companies in the fishing fleet known as the head-and-gut vessels for the way they process fish.

The industry has an interest in a number of federal issues. Congress will soon take up reauthorization of federal legislation regulating the fishing industry. A panel appointed by President Bush recently called for major changes in industry regulation, warning that current practices threaten marine ecosystems.

The Groundfish Forum, which represents many of the head-and-gut vessels, has expressed concern about some of those regulations. Ed Luttrell, the forum's executive director, said Tebelius seemed to "have an appropriate attitude toward the role of government."

Warren Cornwall: 206-464-2311 or wcornwall@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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