Maui County Mayor Michael Victorino is leading in campaign fundraising following the primary election in August with more than $100,000 raised, though he spent much less than his challenger.

During the latest campaign spending reporting period, which ran from Aug. 14 to Sept. 26, Victorino brought in $102,033.09 and spent $37,174.37, while mayoral opponent Richard Bissen received $91,512.50 during the same period and spent $72,459.43 for his campaign, according to reports released earlier this week.

For Victorino, who fell about 2,000 votes short of Bissen during the primary, the funds include a $15,000 investment from himself and his family.

“Mike Victorino is committed to completing the work he began in 2019,” the Victorino for Mayor campaign said in an email to The Maui News. “The pandemic redirected his work for a while, but he never lost his vision for what can be accomplished.”

Victorino received several $4,000 donations from organizations and businesses that included the United Public Workers PAC in Honolulu, California-based Stable Road Capital LLC, three executives from New Jersey-based Unified Door, a New Jersey-based architect with Stantec and California-based Esthetics By Brittnee.

Leigh Tonai, the CEO of Hawaii Island Creations, contributed $2,500, while the Hawaii Committee on Public Education AFL-CIO and realtor Robert Tanaka of Tanaka Inc. gave Victorino $2,000 each, and Parks Department Secretary L.M. Sakumoto contributed $1,300.

Among those who gave $1,000 each were the Maui Hotel & Lodging Association PAC; Maui County Plan Checker Susan Watanabe; retired CEO of First Hawaiian Bank Walter Dods Jr.; Keller Williams realtor Diane Yoshimura; Mayor’s Liaison Bill Snipes; President of Dorvin D. Leis Co. Inc. Stephen Leis.; Maui County Deputy Managing Director Josiah Nishita; Maui County Director of Finance Scott Teruya; Mayor’s Chief of Staff Tyson Miyake; and Maui County Budget Director Michele Yoshimura.

Other notable donations of $500 included Lori Tsuhako, the director of the Maui County Department of Housing and Human Concerns; Helene Kau, director of the Maui County Department of Water Supply; S & F Land Company; Kaonoulu Ranch owner Henry Rice; and Stacy Otomo of Otomo Engineering.

When asked how he planned to work to gather the votes that went to other mayoral opponents in the primary election, Victorino’s campaign pointed to his endorsements from 12 different industries, many of which include county workers.

“They see the progress he continues to make in affordable housing, economic diversification and improving our quality of life,” his campaign said. “They also believe this isn’t the right time for inexperienced leadership of the county. Voters want viable plans that produce results, they are tired of platitudes and promises.”

The report indicated that Victorino much of his campaign earnings on advertising, including a total of $18,650 to Alaska-based Optima Public Relations for radio, print and digital marketing and advertising, as well as more than $2,600 on Facebook advertising. He also spent more than $4,500 on two months’ rent for his campaign headquarters.

Victorino, who started the period with $30,811.99, had $95,670.71 left over.

For Bissen, the largest donations of $4,000 each came from Gal Cohen, president of Kihei-based Cohen Development Group; Damien Stenger of Ax Ranch on Maui; James Marn, manager of Honolulu-based JYM Investment LLC; and Karla Rompel, office manager of Posso Pizza Inc. on Oahu.

Robert Campbell, director of Ohana Rental Company Inc., and Charlotte Yamashiro, a manager at Ululani’s Hawaiian Shave Ice, each contributed $2,500.

“We have been speaking to everybody and anybody, you know, who wants to have a meeting with Richard. Richard has made himself available because he’s been doing his homework and wanting to know what everybody’s concerns are,” Bissen campaign manager Charlene Schulenburg said via phone Wednesday afternoon. “We’re clearly seeing that people want change and they’re believing in Richard’s history, his reputation and I think they are believing in him, so there’s a lot of hopefulness in the air.”

Ulupalakua Ranch President Sumner Erdman, Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Stephen Goodfellow of Goodfellow Bros., contract worker Tiffany Losano and Executive Chef Michael Weinstein of Big Food Service Group LLC boosted Bissen’s campaign with $2,000 each.

There were several $1,000 contributions from retired folks, attorneys and business executives, including John Dean, president and CEO of Central Pacific Bank; Mark Teruya, chairman and CEO of Armstrong Produce; Eric Hashizume, vice president of Hawaiian Dredging Construction Co.; Richard Papa, owner and project executive of RPAPA Construction; Douglas Shimabukuro, board treasurer of FCH Enterprises, the parent company of Zippy’s; and Catherine Yannone of public relations agency CommPac LLC.

Many of Bissen’s largest expenditures were for advertising, including $5,875 to Texas-based Nexstar Media for TV ads, $5,045.80 to Maui Times, $3,124.98 to Kahului-based Rey-Cel Broadcasting Inc. for radio ads, $2,712.74 to Pacific Radio Group, $2,600 to Fil-Am Voice and $1,144.26 to The Maui News.

He also paid $3,850 to Abigail Samuelson of Paia for social media management, $3,734.33 to Wailuku-based Royal Hawaiian Shirt Works for campaign T-shirts and $2,604 to Kihei-based Double Portion LLC for caps and hats.

“It’s expensive to get a name and a message out. It’s less expensive for the mayor because he has the mayor’s platform,” Schulenburg said when asked about Bissen’s higher spending. “If we have spent more money, we started from scratch. … He was a judge, so he didn’t have a social presence, so just starting from scratch, all of that takes an exorbitant amount of money, so we have not spent anything that we have not absolutely had to spend to get his message out, so it’s not like we’re spending money on anything frivolous.”

Bissen, who started with $56,262.08 at the beginning of the period, had $75,315.15 left over.

County Council

Among Maui County Council candidates, Tom Cook brought in more funding than any other at $36,928.24 from Aug. 14 to Sept. 26 as he campaigns for the South Maui residency seat.

Some of the most notable contributions were $2,000 each from Operating Engineers Local Union No. 3; General Contractors Association of Hawaii Political Action Committee; Jonathan Kindred, director of the Central Pacific Bank Board of Directors; Mei Lee Dowling, owner of Wailuku-based Dowling Company; Kahului-based Hope Builders; Kula resident Casey Lamb, development coordinator of Lexcore; and David Goode, the director of land development for Ledcor, the company behind a luxury residential development in Wailea.

Cook has spent $26,106.24 of his fundraising monies, with more than half going to social media marketing.

Fellow South Maui candidate Robin Knox, who came in roughly 1,500 votes shy of Cook in the primary, brought in $11,605.01, which included five donations of $1,000 each from retirees Ravi Bugga, Scott Young and Betty Knox, as well as realtor Michelle Del Rosario and author/healer Sulara James. Retiree Gary Passon also supported her campaign with a $2,000 contribution.

Knox spent $9,364.33 total this period, according to the report, including $3,123.94 in Maui Times ads.

Riki Hokama, who is running for his old Lanai residency seat against incumbent Gabe Johnson, raised $36,250 over the Jan. 1 to Sept. 26 period (some candidates who did not compete in the primary reported their contributions from the start of the year). He spent $25,325.88.

Hokama’s biggest donors, with $2,000 each, included the Hawaii Operating Engineers Industry Stabilization, Maui developer Everett Dowling of the Dowling Company, Hawaii Laborers PAC, Howard’s Nurseries Inc. in Kula, Dwight Mitsunaga of Pacific Architects and retired Honolulu business executive Sharon Brown.

Johnson brought in $14,135.39, including two $2,000 contributions each from Michael Williams and Linda Love of Pueo Farms as well as several $1,000 donations, including one from Council Member Kelly King, as well as from Bugga, Young, Del Rosario and Mark Hyde. Johnson spent $6,223.11.

Other council races and spending totals include:

• Makawao-Haiku-Paia: Nohe Uu-Hodgins, who had a lead of more than 4,000 votes in the primary, received $26,699 from Aug. 14 to Sept. 26 and spent nearly all of her recent earnings at $26,420.52. Opponent Nara Boone brought in $10,352.51 and spent $5,528.23.

• Kahului: Buddy Nobriga earned $12,320 and spent $8,936.50 from Aug. 14 to Sept. 26, while incumbent Tasha Kama brought in $10,434 and spent $5,920.75. Nobriga finished fewer than 300 votes behind Kama.

• Upcountry: Incumbent Yuki Lei Sugimura earned $2,418.97 during this five-week timeframe. She spent $5,318.98 (she came into the reporting period with $67,501.20 on hand). Opponent Jordan Hocker received $3,395.01 and spent $2,165.36.

• West Maui: Incumbent Tamara Paltin has raised $15,162.60 from Jan. 1 through Sept. 26 and spent $8,395.15. No reports were filed for opponent Justin Herrmann.

• Wailuku-Waihee-Waikapu: Incumbent Alice Lee brought in $10,275 between Jan. 1 through Sept. 26. Lee has only spent $64 on her campaign, all of which are bank statement fees. Opponent Noelani Ahia has raised $5,779.31 and has spent $5,373.39.

* Dakota Grossman can be reached at dgrossman@mauinews.com. Managing Editor Colleen Uechi contributed to this report.