The top two contenders for mayor in last fall’s municipal election spent about the same amount on their campaigns, but they raised the money in very different ways.

Approximately 3,100 individuals donated to second-place Catherine McKenney, while contributors to Mayor Mark Sutcliffe — who won the election with more than half the votes cast — totalled about 75.

Yet, as individuals, Sutcliffe’s supporters gave far more. Almost 250 gave $1,200, the maximum allowed, for a total of $300,000. Put another way, Sutcliffe raised more than half of his $537,824 in contributions from just 250 people.

McKenney’s campaign actually brought in $5,000 more than Sutcliffe’s, but only about 60 people gave the $1,200 max. McKenney’s much longer tally of donations listed many contributions in the $100 and $200 range.

All candidates in last fall’s election had to file an audited financial statement of their contributions of $100 or more and campaign spending by 2 p.m. on Friday. There is a 30-day grace period, but candidates must pay a $500 late filing fee.

In many ways, the donor lists for both the top two candidates reflect their campaigns: Sutcliffe’s drew from the business and political establishment, while McKenney ran a more grassroots race that election results — and campaign contributions — suggest appealed more to voters in the core of the city.

McKenney spent $100K more on staff, office

Not only do Sutcliffe and McKenney appear to have gone about soliciting money in different ways, they also spent their money differently.

The mayor shelled out $282,792 on advertising and $30,510 on brochures, while his key competitor spent $176,001 on ads and $18,277 on brochures.

But McKenney way outspent their opponent when it came to paying campaign workers. While Sutcliffe’s campaign paid out $46,094 on salaries, honoraria and professional fees, McKenney spent a whopping $128,322. The former Somerset ward councillor also spent $20,000 more on office expenses than Sutcliffe.

Sutcliffe and McKenney shelled out similar amounts on signs, $40,035 and $37,188 respectively. 

Sutcliffe also raised about $100,000 through five fundraisers – all called “Meet Mark Sutcliffe” – including one on Sept. 22, where 31 people paid $1,200 for tickets. That single event raised $37,200.

McKenney’s campaign appears to have held no fundraisers.

Neither had developer donations

Neither Sutcliffe nor McKenney appears to have accepted donations from developers. Whereas McKenney released their donations at several points during the campaign — and pushed Sutcliffe to do the same — the mayor decided to wait until Friday to release his.

Both candidates had pledged not to accept donations from development industry leaders and their families. While any individual is allowed to donate to a municipal campaign candidate in Ontario, developer donations can be controversial because city council decisions on planning can be worth millions to their companies.

Sutcliffe’s donation list was full of business people from across the city, which isn’t a surprise given his background as an entrepreneur, one of the founders of the Ottawa Business Journal and former chair of the Ottawa Board of Trade.

Shopify president Harley Finkelstein, Hexo founders Sebastien St-Louis and Adam Miron, restaurateurs John Borsten and Stephen Beckta, car dealership owner Jeff Mierins and Jeff York of Farm Boy were among those who donated $1.200.

There were also recognizable names from the political and lobbying worlds on Sutcliffe’s donation list.

Four members of the Liberal McGuinty family – including former premier Dalton – and Conservative strategists Michelle Coates-Mather, Kory Teneycke and Chris Froggatt also contributed the maximum amount.

Former mayor Jim Watson gave Sutcliffe’s campaign $500.

Interestingly, Miron of Hexo fame also donated $1,200 to McKenney. Most of their max-contributors were less recognizable names than Sutcliffe’s.

The former Somerset ward councillor received support from many like-minded politicians, including Ottawa Centre NDP MPP Joel Harden ($200), Kitchissippi ward Coun. Jeff Leiper ($103.30), Capital ward Shawn Menard ($250), Diane Holmes ($600), and Alex Cullen ($900).

Former environment minister Catherine McKenna, who endorsed McKenney during the campaign, donated $250.