Maryland abuts the power corridors of Washington, D.C. and is even home to some of the movers and shakers who operate in the nation’s capital. But the state’s former governor, Martin O’Malley, will have to reach far beyond the Free State’s borders if he wants to mount a meaningful challenge to Hillary Clinton for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination.
O’Malley is now the third Democrat to throw his hat into the ring, after Clinton and Bernie Sanders. During two terms as governor, O’Malley raised a respectable $22 million in campaign funding, while getting to know national power brokers as chair, for two years, of the Democratic Governors Association.
But his fundraising prowess pales next to that of some of the candidates he’s likely to compete against, including Scott Walker, the Republican governor of Wisconsin, which is nearly identical to Maryland in terms of population. Walker raised more than $70 million leading up to his 2014 re-election--roughly 6 times what O’Malley raised during his last election, in 2010. Walker’s strong anti-union tactics as governor attracted national attention and contributions from some of his party’s biggest donors, something O’Malley can only dream about.
O’Malley’s fundraising records show that about 72% of the contributions to his campaign came from in-state donors, which is appropriate for a governor running on issues important to the residents and businesses of his state. But it leaves him with a limited base of national donors to tap for a presidential run that demands far more money. During Walker’s re-election campaign in 2014, less than half of his money came from in-state donors, with 57% coming from outsiders who now form the core of an enviable fundraising network.
Still, O’Malley does have a few cherished donors able to help float his campaign, at least at the outset. Here are some of the donors who supported O’Malley when he was governor (from 2007 to 2015) and might form the core of his donor base as a presidential nominee:
John P. Coale, a retired trial attorney. Coale, who’s married to Fox News host Great van Susteren, was O’Malley’s biggest individual donor when he was governor, contributing $500,000 to O’Malley’s 2006 campaign, according to the National Institute on Money in State Politics . Coale has donated to many candidates, mostly Democrats, and he’s friendly with Hillary Clinton. But he says he’s supporting his pal O’Malley in the 2016 race, and has already flown the guv to several campaign stops on his private jet.
Labor unions. O’Malley drew sizable donations from unions representing teachers, healthcare workers, firefighters, carpenters, electricians and other blue-collar workers, which is hardly surprising for a Democrat. He’ll compete with Clinton for their money in a national campaign, though.
James G. Robinson, movie producer whose credits include "True Romance" and the "Ace Ventura" films. Robinson is a Maryland native whose firm, Morgan Creek, has offices in Baltimore. He donated a relatively modest $18,000 to O’Malley during his time as governor, but has given larger sums to Democratic campaign committees in Congress, making him a likely target for additional O’Malley funding.
Stephen L. Bing, heir to a New York real-estate fortune. Bing lives in California and has spent millions supporting environmental initiatives in his home state, along with several Democratic politicians. He also donated $14,000 to O’Malley, who no doubt hopes there’s more where that came from.
Tom Steyer, California hedge-fund billionaire. Steyer and his wife Kathryn gave O’Malley $12,000 in three installments in 2006 and 2008. That’s not much, considering that Steyer has become the nation’s top political donor, contributing $75 million in 2014 alone, all of it to Democrats and liberal causes. But if that $12,000 were a mere down payment on a more presidentially sized donation, O’Malley would no doubt be delighted.
O’Malley recently launched a super PAC called Generation Forward, meant to lure wealthy donors who can give unlimited amounts used for advertising and other activities that support the former governor’s campaign. But there’s no sign yet he’s lured the kind of megadonors who can almost single-handedly keep a campaign going, the way Republican candidates Ted Cruz, Rick Santorum and Marco Rubio have.
O’Malley also has about half-a-million dollars left in another political-action group, called O’ Say Can You See, which could help jump-start his presidential run. But he’ll quickly need many times that amount if he wants to make voters forget about Hillary Clinton for a moment or two.
Rick Newman’s latest book is Liberty for All: A Manifesto for Reclaiming Financial and Political Freedom. Follow him on Twitter: @rickjnewman.
