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Zeroing In: Luzerne County voters missed opportunities to challenge status quo

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Hanover Class of 1955 celebrated 60th class reunion

<p>When outstanding bills are settled, Democrat Vito DeLuca estimates spending on his unsuccessful race for Luzerne County District Attorney will ring in around $43,000, maybe less.</p><p>Incumbent Republican Stefanie Salavantis, the victor, projects $130,000 in total spending on her campaign, three times the amount her challenger spent.</p><p>In situations like this, the losing candidate often slips into a victim mode, largely blaming his or her loss on the winner&#8217;s decision to spend significantly more money.</p><p>DeLuca isn&#8217;t taking that stance, although he urges both voters and future district attorney candidates to consider what they think is an acceptable amount to run for the 4-year seat, which pays $178,806 in 2016, according to the county&#8217;s proposed budget.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m a firm believer that when you run for public office, you shouldn&#8217;t have to spend anywhere near what the position pays, especially if that position is only for four years,&#8221; said DeLuca, an attorney. &#8220;I ran what I believe to be a very effective campaign through resources I&#8217;m comfortable with.&#8221;</p><p>Salavantis said she spent the amount necessary to &#8220;get the message out.&#8221;</p><p>Costly advertising is essential, particularly in such a large county, she said. The bulk of her spending was for the production and purchase of radio and television ads and billboards, she said.</p><p>&#8220;People want to be educated, and I wanted county residents to know I take this position seriously. I wanted them to know my position and record,&#8221; Salavantis said.</p><p>Additional spending also was necessary to respond to an advertisement against her, she said.</p><p>&#8220;You have to be prepared to spend more depending on what happens in the campaign,&#8221; she said.</p><p><strong> 2011 campaign</strong></p><p>Salavantis spent more than twice as much &#8212; $269,900 &#8212; in her initial 2011 campaign when she faced an uphill battle to build name recognition and unseat Democratic incumbent Jackie Musto Carroll.</p><p>Musto Carroll, who spent $122,800, made an issue of Salavantis&#8217; spending after that election, saying she was surprised by the volume and substance of Salavantis&#8217; media campaign and didn&#8217;t have the funds to compete.</p><p>While she raised donations to fund this year&#8217;s campaign, Salavantis relied heavily on loans from her parents in her 2011 race.</p><p>Musto Carroll&#8217;s campaign was funded with $30,000 left from prior elections, $72,600 in contributions and a $25,000 loan from her parents.</p><p>&#8220;There&#8217;s no question that money talks in politics,&#8221; Musto Carroll said at the time. &#8220;I was never a politician, so fundraising was not a priority for me. I truly thought that, if you do a good job that would be the standard people measured me by.&#8221;</p><p>Salavantis, who had credited her 2011 victory on her message and the public&#8217;s desire for change, said Friday she wanted to hold fundraisers to repay her parents during her first term but was &#8220;too busy&#8221; running the office. Her parents understood they may never recoup the $197,000 they are still owed, she said.</p><p>&#8220;They empowered me and were willing to take that risk. Every day I thank them for that,&#8221; Salavantis said.</p><p><strong> 2007 race</strong></p><p>Musto Carroll was the top spender in the 2007 district attorney race.</p><p>She landed both party primary election nominations after her committee spent more than $182,000.</p><p>DeLuca, also a Democrat, ran against her in the primary and spent $49,500, records show.</p><p>District attorney campaign spending may never top the record $702,000 put out by Democrat Dave Lupas&#8217; committee in 1999.</p><p>Tom Marsilio, his Republican opponent, said at the time he spent less than $100,000.</p><p>Marsilio had blasted Lupas, who is now a county judge, for spending so much in a county race and for receiving a $245,000 campaign loan from his father, Anthony, to help fund his campaign.</p><p><strong>Return on an investment</strong></p><p>Wilkes-Barre-based Democratic strategist Ed Mitchell said district attorney candidates should expect to spend around $150,000 or more.</p><p>&#8220;The purpose of the exercise is to win a seat, and generally speaking, you want to at least match your opponent in spending. If you can&#8217;t do that when you are contemplating running, then you shouldn&#8217;t run,&#8221; said Mitchell, who had worked on both the Musto Carroll and Lupas campaigns.</p><p>The district attorney is a county row officer, but the campaign budget should be more on par with those for county Court of Common Pleas judicial candidates due to the state-mandated compensation, he said. The district attorney receives $1,000 less than the salary for a county judge, according to state law.</p><p>The exact salary of county judges isn&#8217;t known until the end of November or early December, when the state sets the 2016 salaries. Judges typically receive pay increases based on the consumer price index. Judges now are paid $176,572.</p><p>Several successful candidates spent around $200,000 or more in 2011 county judicial races, which are 10-year seats, records show.</p><p>Mitchell said he doesn&#8217;t agree when candidates compare spending to the annual salary unless they multiply the compensation over the length of the term.</p><p>Salavantis will earn more than $700,000 over four years.</p><p>&#8220;You have to look at the overall investment and what the return of that investment is,&#8221; he said.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Salavantis </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/web1_salavantis035.jpg</photo0><caption0>Salavantis </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/election-logo-2015-2-.pdf">
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<div class="neCaption">DeLuca </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/web1_dadebate03.jpg</photo2><caption2>DeLuca </caption2><photoCredit2></photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/web1_TTL110615salavantis1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Winning Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis estimates she spent about $130,000 on signs, advertising and other campaign expenses. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/web1_TTL110615salavantis1.jpg</photo3><caption3>Winning Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis estimates she spent about $130,000 on signs, advertising and other campaign expenses. </caption3><photoCredit3>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Campaign spending debated in Luzerne County District Attorney’s race