CONGRESS Ryan reports campaign donations of $77,142 for 2nd quarter of year

Two other Mahoning Valley congressmen raised about $100,000 each.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan still lags behind other Mahoning and Shenango valley members of Congress when it comes to money in his campaign fund, but he is making progress.
Ryan, of Niles, a freshman member of Congress, raised $77,142 between April 1 and June 30, with $59,250 of it coming from political action committees, according to his latest financial report filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Among Ryan's local contributors were Bruce Zoldan, president of B.J. Alan Fireworks; Jeffrey M. Simon of Poland, a trucking company owner; Richard Sokolov, a developer with Simon Property Group; and Kevin McGuire, president of Northern Ohio Golf Charities. All gave him $1,000.
Ryan, D-17th, spent $49,943 during the year's second quarter. Among his major expenses were $21,348 to Fraioli and Associates, which is operated by Michael Fraioli, Ryan's campaign treasurer who has raised millions of dollars for Democratic congressional candidates in the past; $6,000 to his brother, Allen L. Ryan, for management consulting; and $6,140 to McMenamy's, a Niles restaurant owned by the family of his regional director Rick Leonard, for catering a fund-raiser.
With the carryover from the year's first quarter, Ryan, whose district includes portions of Mahoning and Trumbull counties, has $83,587 in his campaign fund. He finished 2002 with $240 in the fund after spending nearly $600,000 to get elected last year.
Five-term congressmen
U.S. Reps. Ted Strickland and Steven C. LaTourette, both serving their fifth terms in Congress, each raised about $100,000 during the second quarter of the year toward their re-election efforts.
The money raised by the two incumbents gives them edges over any challengers, who will have to play catch-up to compete financially for the seats next year. Both outspent their challengers in last year's election by large margins.
Strickland, of Lisbon, D-6th, raised $98,834 between April 1 and June 30, and spent only $3,126 during that time period, his FEC filing says.
Of the money raised by Strickland, whose district includes portions of Mahoning and Columbiana counties, $86,292 came from political action committees, with the rest coming from individuals. No one from the Mahoning Valley contributed to Strickland in the second quarter.
With the money Strickland raised before April, he now has $240,124 in his campaign fund about a year before the 2004 primary. He spent about $850,000 in 2002 to win re-election.
LaTourette, of Madison, R-14th, is on even more solid financial footing.
LaTourette, whose district includes seven northern townships in Trumbull County, raised $106,864 in the year's second quarter, $55,000 from PACs. Like Strickland, LaTourette received no contributions from anyone in the Valley.
LaTourette spent $71,582 between April and June, including $2,126 in travel expenses to fly House Speaker Dennis Hastert for an April fund-raiser in Akron; $2,174 to Quandarcy Corp. of Akron for a charter fee; and $3,847 to Morgan, Meredith and Associates, a Chantilly, Va., company, for fund-raising consulting fees.
LaTourette has more money than Strickland because of a $395,343 carryover he had from earlier this year. LaTourette's campaign fund stands at $430,625. He spent about $530,000 on his re-election effort last year.
Pennsylvania reps
U.S. Rep. Phil English of Erie, Pa., R-3rd, raised $63,310 in the year's second quarter, including $45,895 from PACs, and spent $48,631 during the same time. Including his carryover, English, whose district includes portions of Mercer County, has $350,284 in his campaign war chest. He spent about $780,000 getting re-elected last year.
U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart of Bradford Woods, Pa., R-4th, raised the most money during the year's second quarter of anyone who represents the Valleys. But she has less money in her campaign fund than Strickland, LaTourette and English.
Hart, whose district includes portions of Mercer and Lawrence counties, raised $129,163 between April and June, $66,728 from individuals and the rest from PACs. Contributors included Douglas D. Danforth, retired chairman and chief executive officer for Westinghouse Electric Corp., who gave $1,000, and Pittsburgh Pirates owner Kevin McClatchy, who gave $500.
Hart spent $83,055 during the year's second quarter, including $10,300 to Michael E. O'Connell of Natrona Heights, Pa., for consulting fees and $3,850 to Rob Jennings of Washington, D.C., for consulting fees.
Including her carryover, Hart has $124,881 in her campaign fund. She spent $1.17 million to get re-elected last year.
skolnick@vindy.com