Workman still raking in cash

In the midst of crippling legal and political problems, with her poll numbers plummeting and the specter of being a convicted felon looming, Salt Lake County Mayor Nancy Workman is still raking in the cash.

According to campaign finance disclosure forms filed Wednesday, in the past three months — three months of turmoil, suspicion, legal problems and confusion — Workman has raised a whopping $199,000. That's barely less than what Democrat Peter Corroon has raised — $214,000 — during his entire campaign.

"We were frankly surprised how much she was able to get," Corroon spokesman Russell Kennedy said.

Independent Merrill Cook has raised a relative pittance: $16,000 in the past three months.

All of the major contributions to Workman's campaign arrived before she was charged with felony misuse of public money last week, but even before that she was under a cloud, with people speculating on whether she would be charged.

Workman campaign manager Chris Bleak attributed the vigorous cash flow to contributors looking beyond Workman's legal troubles and examining how she has performed as mayor.

"I'm confident that they can tell the difference," he said Wednesday. "Once she is tried and exonerated, they will come back to her."

Having raised a total of $820,000, Workman is closing in on $1 million — an enormous amount in a Salt Lake County mayoral race and, of course — since this is only the second time the office has been contested — by far the most.

Having raised only a quarter of that, Corroon's campaign maintains that Workman's war chest is much too much.

"To be raising the kind of money she has been is, quite frankly, appalling," Kennedy said.

Workman's camp, of course, makes no apologies, and to be fair, one should note that Workman is essentially conducting two campaigns: one political, to convince the public to vote for her, and one legal, to convince the public that she is innocent of the charges now pending against her.

The list of large contributors basically follows the pattern of previous disclosure statements, with Workman gathering more money from large developers, businessmen and consultants, with fewer, larger contributions in general.

The most salient aspect of Corroon's fund raising is the huge amount he has received from the Utah Democratic Party: $32,000 in the past three months, including a $10,000 infusion on the very day the disclosure forms were filed.

"They see a very unique opportunity here in Peter," Kennedy said.

Corroon's fund raising is also distinguished — as it has been in the past — by large contributions from out-of-town businesses and individuals. Perhaps the most interesting is a $5,000 contribution from the Vermont-based Democracy for America, which grew out of Howard Dean's failed presidential bid.

Dean is Corroon's first cousin.

All of Workman's money, which has so far bought several radio spots and, most recently, a controversial television ad in which people on the street defend Workman against her legal troubles, hasn't kept her support from melting away in the face of the charges. A Deseret Morning News/KSL poll conducted last week showed Corroon with 43 percent support, Cook with 20 percent and Workman with 12 percent.

Salt Lake County Republican Party Chairwoman Tiani Coleman said those numbers would improve.

"She's hit bottom," she said. "There's no place to go but up."

E-mail: aedwards@desnews.com

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