Amanda Fritz, Forced into Runoff, Raises Donation Limit to $250

Portland Mercury:

A tipster attending Commissioner Amanda Fritz's Gilt Club campaign re-launch party last night shared some interesting news: Fritz—who was dramatically outraised by State Representative Mary Nolan while limiting contributions to $50—has decided to up her limit to $250. Fritz has confirmed that change, and her website has already been updated with the new number. Yesterday, Charlie Hales promised a $600 limit on donations in the mayoral race—acting on an issue first pushed by his rival, Jefferson Smith.

Fritz wound up relying on her own money to squeak ahead of Nolan and her blistering attack campaign in the May primary, but she still fell short of landing the 50-percent-plus-one-vote knockout punch she needed to win outright. Asking for more money had to be a difficult decision for Fritz—it may open her up to attacks suggesting she's desperate and/or vacillating—but it was probably the only practical one, short of surrendering and finally getting some sleep. Which wasn't going to happen. Update 10:30 AM: Fritz has now sent out a press release on the kickoff—and also the decision to accept more money. I'll update when I can with comment from Nolan's camp. Perhaps the most enthusiastic cheers of the evening came when Fritz announced she is setting her fundraising contribution cap for the General Election at $250 per person. She is still not accepting donations from corporations, unions, or other entities that are not individual people. Her $250 cap is the lowest announced limit among candidates for Portland citywide office. Fritz noted that her change in voluntary limits is in response to input from many community members, and laughed, saying, "I may be the only political candidate in Portland whose supporters have been begging me to ask for more, rather than to leave them alone." [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

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