Council candidate Zelenka pulls ahead in fundraising.

Byline: Edward Russo The Register-Guard

With another assist from Eugene's firefighters union, City Council candidate Alan Zelenka last month pulled ahead of rival Bruce Mulligan in raising money for the May 16 election.

Zelenka received $2,500 from the Eugene Firefighters Association, part of the $6,150 that he raised March 31-April 30, according to disclosure reports filed on Thursday.

Zelenka is battling Mulligan and Jana Jackson in the race for Ward 3, the neighborhood around the University of Oregon currently represented by David Kelly.

With $7,952 in cash, Zelenka's war chest was substantially larger than Mulligan's or Jackson's.

Zelenka's other large contributors were the Portland-based Oregon League of Conservation Voters, which provided him with $1,045 worth of voter outreach efforts, such as phone calls and mailings, and Eugene attorney Art Johnson, who gave $500.

With their latest donation, the firefighters have given Zelenka a total of $4,500 for the election.

In the latest reporting period, Zelenka also got $2,900 in donations of $100 or less.

Altogether, Zelenka had raised $16,025 in the campaign, compared to Mulligan's $13,050 and Jackson's $1,185.

Mulligan, a self-employed business consultant, had previously received $3,000 from the Eugene Police Employee's Association. In the latest period, however, his total fundraising only hit $1,025.

His largest donor was construction executive James Wildish, who gave $500.

Mulligan's campaign had $1,710 to spend on April 30.

Jackson, a dry cleaners employee, reported raising $685 in cash and in-kind contributions. That brought her fundraising total to $1,185 for the campaign. She had $197 in cash.

Jackson was the only candidate who agreed to abide by the city's voluntary rule to not spend more than $7,500 in the campaign.

She received $100 contributions from four individuals and their spouses, and she loaned her campaign $155.

Northwest Councilor Jennifer Solomon reported receiving $1,500 in the period, bringing her fundraising total to $4,700.

Solomon, seeking a second, four-year term, got $1,000 from cable TV company Comcast and $500 from Oregonians for Affordable Housing, which represents homebuilders. She had a cash balance of $6,588.

Her Ward 6 opponent, Rich Cunningham, previously said he did not expect to raise and spend more than $2,000 on the election so he wasn't required to file a report.