How Much Do 2 Riverside City Council Elections Cost? New Campaign Filings Show About $600k

The four Riverside City Council candidates running for the Ward 2 and 4 seats have raised about $670,000 and spent just under $600,000 over the last 10 months, according to campaign finance filings submitted earlier this month. 

The Riverside Record compiled each candidate’s filings to show just how much it costs to run for office in the city. 

Ward 2

The two candidates vying for the Ward 2 seat have received a combined total of about $360,000 in campaign contributions and spent about $331,000, according to recently filed campaign finance reports. The two newcomers, Gracie Torres and Aram Ayra,, are vying for the seat currently held by outgoing Councilmember Clarissa Cervantes.

Since filing her mid-year financial reports, Torres has received about $90,000 in total campaign contributions, including nonmonetary contributions, allowing her to amass a political war chest of about $254,000. Since the end of June, her biggest donors have been a mix of unions, political action committees (PAC) and business owners, including Riverside Firefighters Legislative Action Group, Service Employees International Union Local 721 and the Inland Empire Business PAC. 

“Our campaign’s resources have allowed us to establish a strong voter outreach operation, including neighborhood canvassing, voter education, mailers and community engagement,” Torres said in an email to The Record. “These efforts help ensure residents have access to information about my background, priorities and vision for Riverside.”

At a candidate forum held by a local community group earlier this month, she said the money has helped her remain a viable candidate since her schedule was split between a full-time job and taking care of her children. She also said she was in favor of campaign contribution limits, because it would help level the playing field. Ayra, at the October forum, also said he was an advocate for establishing campaign contribution limits. 

As of October 17, much of her campaign’s funds have been spent on campaign literature, banners, consultants and other canvassing efforts. 

“I encourage residents to review our publicly available campaign finance disclosures, ask questions and make informed decisions about the candidates seeking to represent them,” Torres said. “Campaign contributions do not determine my priorities or positions, [because] my responsibility is to the residents of Ward 2, and my decisions will always be guided by what is best for our community.”

Independent from her campaign, the National Association of Realtors reported October 9 it had spent an estimated $30,000 for video, digital ads and website services in support of Torres’ candidacy. 

The National Association of Realtors did not immediately respond to The Record’s request for comment. 

“We all make choices when running for office, [and] she is entitled to hers, just as the groups mentioned above are entitled to back the candidate they believe will best represent their interests at city hall,” Ayra said in an email to The Record. “Similarly, residents are entitled to ask what that level of investment means when critical decisions come before the council, and whose interests will come first.”

Ayra’s filings show he has received about $109,000 and spent $111,000 as of October 17. This includes both unpaid bills and nonmonetary contributions. According to his filings, he had about $8,000 remaining. 

His biggest donors, other than himself and his family members as previously reported, have been a mix of unions, Cervantes’ campaign and now-Councilmember Luis Hernandez’s campaign. 

Similarly to Torres, the bulk of Ayra’s campaign money has primarily been spent on consultants, campaign literature and canvassing. 

“We are 100% grassroots-funded, which has been an intentional and difficult, but rewarding choice to make,” Ayra said. “I hope it also gives voters the confidence to know that I will represent their interests first and foremost at city hall.”

Throughout the campaign, Ayra has said he was the sole candidate in the race to reject corporate PAC donations. His opponent, during a September forum, however, accused Ayra of sitting down with Inland Empire Business PAC representatives in hopes of an endorsement. 

In a response to The Record, Ayra confirmed that he sat down with the organization as part of the PAC’s “standard process” for all candidates running for local office.

“When I met with them and stood by my positions, my critics questioned my principles,” Ayra said. “I believe residents expect their council member to have these kinds of conversations without compromising their values or what they stand for.” 

Ward 4

In the race for the Ward 4 seat, incumbent Chuck Conder is running against challenger Rich Vandenberg to represent the city’s southernmost neighborhoods, like Hawarden Hills, Alessandro Heights and Orangecrest. 

Since filing his mid-year financial report, Vandenberg’s campaign coffers have doubled, going from about $21,000 to about $55,000. He declined to comment.

His donors over the past few months include a mix of local business owners, unions and individuals, like Service Employees International Union Local 721, Bail Hotline Bail Bonds and Riverside Unified School DistrictTrustee Brent Lee’s campaign.

Conder, however, has received about five times that amount. Vandenberg previously told The Record that he has deployed grassroots campaign techniques, like knocking on more than 15,000 doors to get his message across to residents. 

Conder’s filings showed his campaign had received about $250,000 as of October 20, primarily from a mix of local business owners and labor PACs like the Associated Builders & Contractors of Southern California and the Riverside Construction Company. That money, according to his filings, has also been mostly used to pay for consultants, literature and fundraisers. 

Conder did not immediately respond to The Record’s request for comment. 

Vandenberg, at the October forum, joined both Ward 2 candidates to call for campaign contribution limits, while Conder pushed back on the sentiment, stating he felt the council’s decision to not institute limits allowed for more transparency and helped keep dark money out of local politics.