Dornan Unfazed by Lack of Funds

Former Rep. Robert K. Dornan’s campaign is broke after raising about $2 million since 1996.

“Yup, that’s true,” he said in a telephone interview Monday.

The 18-year congressional veteran reported less than $4,500 in his campaign war chest as of June 30, after subtracting outstanding debts.

Dornan remains undaunted and said he will raise more than $700,000 from direct mail contributors nationwide to fund his election fight against Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove) in November.

“We will have enough to keep campaigning to the end and mount a saturation campaign in the district,” he said.

Dornan’s fund-raising prediction could come true. His campaign collected that amount from July to November last year, when “the voter-fraud campaign was at its peak,” he said.

Dornan said he would net about $350,000 from the mail campaign.

In addition, Dornan will receive substantial help and contributions from national Republican Party organizations. The National Republican Congressional Committee, which funds key GOP races, has promised as much as $70,000 to his campaign, he said.

Sanchez, who beat Dornan by 984 votes in 1996 in the 46th Congressional District, has nearly $1.1 million in cash, according to her latest campaign report. She raised $246,000 in the six-week period ending June 30.

The candidates have each raised about $2 million in campaign cash since their 1996 battle, making the current central Orange County District race probably the costliest congressional race in the nation.

John Peschong, Republican National Committee western regional coordinator, said the Dornan campaign would receive the full backing of both the Republican National Committee and its congressional campaign arm, the National Republican Congressional Committee.

“He is our man,” Peschong said.

He called Dornan “high profile and high priority for the RNC and the congressional committee” and said Sanchez is vulnerable.

“Look at her numbers,” he said, pointing to the fact that Sanchez has not received more then 46% of the votes cast in either the 1996 election or the 1998 primary.

Sanchez spokesman Lee Godown said Sanchez is taking nothing for granted. She is campaigning hard and raising money. She walked precincts for four hours on Saturday and Sunday meeting voters, Godown said.

“Bob Dornan is capable of raising a lot of money nationwide,” he said, adding that House Speaker Newt Gingrich and other GOP congressional leaders have left open the possibility that Dornan could receive reimbursement from the House for $464,000 in legal fees spent challenging Sanchez’s election, claiming she won because of irregularities in voting. Sanchez sought reimbursement for $421,000.

Dornan reported raising and spending about $145,000 from mid-May to June 30. That brought his total contributions for the year to $475,000 while spending $687,000.

The bulk of Dornan’s expenditures went to direct-mail costs and to battle a tough four-way primary contest.

His key competitor, attorney Lisa Hughes, spent $372,000 this year in losing to Dornan, who received twice as many votes as she did. Hughes, a millionaire, lent her campaign $285,000, according to the report.

In a separate campaign, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) reported $89,000 in cash, and has collected $110,000 this year.

His opponent, Realtor Pat Neal, reported raising $72,000 this year, and lent her campaign about $146,000. She had $194,000 in cash in her campaign account.