Saban lagging in campaign fundraising bid

The candidate Democrats were banking on to topple Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is coming up short on cash, according to campaign finance reports released Monday.

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Dan Saban, the former Mesa police commander, has raised about $48,000 to wage his underdog bid to unseat Arpaio, who has held the post for the past 16 years.

Meanwhile, the sheriff has nearly doubled any county fundraising records in previous elections by raking in almost $430,000.

Saban challenged Arpaio four years ago in the Republican primary but switched his registration to Democrat after he was soundly defeated. So far, Saban, who is running unopposed, has had little success tapping into the new party's money.

"There may be a slice of the population that has bought into the idea that Arpaio can't be beaten and will invest their campaign contributions elsewhere," said Democratic political consultant Bob Grossfeld. "Until (Saban) convinces people otherwise, it will be difficult for him to raise money."

Saban said efforts to raise cash have run into "hurdles" but that changed recently. So far, he said his campaign has brought in about $13,000 in June as the campaign has focused more on raising cash.

"It does not look very promising financially," Saban said Monday. "But there's a silent majority out and they're frustrated with Arpaio," he said.

Candidates in state and local races had until 5 p.m. Monday to file campaign finance records detailing how much money they raised through May 31. Earl de Berge, a political pollster with the Behavior Research Center, said he wasn't surprised Arpaio has more than doubled the previous fundraising record of $208,000 he set in 2004.

"Given all the people upset with the sheriff you'd think Saban could have raised more money," he said. "He's got a uphill battle and the sheriff has a great fundraising and publicity machine."

Arpaio said he's raising the money because he "doesn't take anything for granted in politics," but is confident he will be re-elected.

"I've always been controversial, but that hasn't hurt my fundraising," he said. "First it was the tents, then it was the pink underwear, then it was the chain gangs and I still keep getting re-elected."

While Saban is having trouble tapping Democrats for money, Tim Nelson, who is vying for his party's nomination for Maricopa County Attorney, has had no problem filling his campaign coffers.

So far, his campaign has brought in about $206,000, far outpacing his Democratic opponent Gerald Richard who has brought in about $66,000.

Despite that low total, Richard's campaign believes it can still run a credible campaign. "We think we got the best candidate," said Doug Ramsey, a spokesman for Richard's campaign. "We hope people will get the message." Meanwhile, the Democrats opponent, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, a Republican, has raised $252,000 to run his re-election efforts.

However, he has only raised about $52,000 since the beginning of the year, according finance records. Barnett Lotstein, a spokesman for the campaign, said Thomas hasn't focused on raising money. He added that he doesn't need to raise as much as his potential Democratic challengers, who are spending their cash in a primary.

Nelson, however, disagrees. "If you're an incumbent and can only raise $52,000 that tells you you're in trouble," he said.