Lingle exceeds
voluntary limit
on spending

She raises $2,379,089
and returns the public funds
awarded for limiting
campaigns

By Richard Borreca
Star-Bulletin

Republican candidate for governor Maui Mayor Linda Lingle found out what happens when your fund-raising campaign is too successful: You have to give some of the money back.

Lingle yesterday returned $136,229 to the state Campaign Spending Commission. The money was given to her when she agreed to abide by the voluntary campaign expenditure limits of $1,362,290 for the primary election.

In other words, according to state law, she would have been rewarded for voluntarily limiting her campaign expenses. But her fund-raising efforts were more successful than expected, and she wound up spending about $150,000 more than the limit, said Brian Nakamura, campaign spending commission attorney.

Total expenditures reported by Lingle so far are $1,473,179.

"We had such a positive response to our fund-raising efforts from the population in Hawaii that we have elected not to utilize the public funds available to us for the primary election," Reg Baker, campaign treasurer, said in a letter with the check.

Lingle said Baker told her Thursday night that her campaign had spent over the limit allowed to get public funds.

Although fund-raising expenses don't count toward the limit, she said she told her people, "Just write a check and give it back. To me, the law is pretty clear."

She said she will apply again Monday for public funds for the general election. "We're pretty excited that the public responded the way it did to a real grass-roots campaign, but we have to work hard to raise money through the general election."

Rick Humphreys, Gov. Ben Cayetano's campaign co-chairman, today said Lingle "has broken the law and there are only two explanations. One is that she did not know the law. The other is that she knew it and did not care.

"Either way, the fact that Linda Lingle has exceeded the legal campaign spending limit in this election by such a large amount is a serious concern for the people of Hawaii," Humphreys said.

Lingle has raised $2,379,089 in her campaign so far. In reports required to be filed with the state yesterday, Lingle said she raised $707,036 in the last two weeks of the primary election.

During that same period, Sept. 9-19, Lingle spent $253,134 in her campaign against her Republican opponent, former Honolulu Mayor Frank Fasi.

Fasi spent more than a half-million dollars, but almost all of it was his own money. His spending report shows that he spent $95,209 in the last two weeks of his unsuccessful campaign.

The winner in the Democratic primary, Cayetano, has raised a total of $4,210,727 in the last four years. In the last two weeks of the primary, he picked up $98,391 and spent $253,140.

Cayetano and Fasi did not agree to abide by the campaign spending limits.

Asked why candidates are allowed to say they will abide by a spending limit and then, if they raise enough money, to spend over the limit, Bob Watada, Campaign Spending Commission executive director, said the law is designed not to conflict with U.S. Supreme Court rulings that forbid limiting how much a candidate can spend to seek public office.

But if a candidate doesn't limit spending, the public money has to be returned.

He said there was a question about one provision of the law which requires a candidate to notify both the Campaign Spending Commission and all opponents the day the spending limit is exceeded. Lingle didn't notify the commission until yesterday, although she went over the limit sometime last month.

This summer, Lingle was arguing the other way. She said the Campaign Spending Commission was hurting her campaign by not releasing more public money in return for her agreement to limit spending.