Campaign Contributions for County Executive David Craig Released

Campaign contribution reports were due to the Maryland Board of Elections this week, and Harford County Executive David Craig's latest data puts him behind four other potential gubernatorial hopefuls.

Craig, a Republican, has not officially said whether he will run for governor in 2014 but told The Daily Record in October that he was "99 percent sure" he would.

Gov. Martin O'Malley, a Democrat, took office in 2008 and is term-limited.

Craig was one of "the leading Republican prospects," according to The Baltimore Sun.

When campaign finance reports were due Wednesday, Craig missed the filing deadline by a few hours due to technical difficulties, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Now available online, Craig's report shows he raised $232,283 between 2012 and 2013. He has $202,236 in hand.

Craig said in a statement Thursday that he actually raised $231,103, has $200,736 cash in hand, and his campaign team "is working around the clock" to correct the technical issues.

So far, potential contenders in the 2014 gubernatorial election and their campaign finance summaries are as follows:

• Attorney General Doug Gansler: raised $1.17 million, has $5.2 million cash in hand. His campaign representatives said that was more than five times what O'Malley' raised when he ran in 2006, reports WAMU.
• Howard County Executive Ken Ulman: raised $1.07 million, has $2.1 million cash in hand. According to the Washington Post, 90 percent of his contributions came from Maryland.
• Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown: raised $265,944, has $1.63 million cash in hand. His representatives told the Frederick News Post that rather than raising funds for himself, Brown was busy campaigning for Obama, the Maryland DREAM Act and same-sex marriage.
• Frederick County Commissioner Blaine Young: raised $445,651, has $349,277 cash in hand.

Craig explained where his energies were focused.

“Until now, we have been running a light operation realizing that the party’s full efforts and finances needed to be invested in the recent national election," said Craig, who chaired the Mitt Romney campaign in Harford County.

Rather than campaigning at the end of 2012, Craig told The Daily Record he was focused on getting his goals for Harford County in order for the next year.

Craig has been the county executive in Harford since 2005 and, like O'Malley, is term-limited. Prior to his election as county executive, Craig served in the Maryland Senate (1995–1999) and House of Delegates (1991–1994). He was the mayor of Havre de Grace from 1985–1989 and 2001–2005.

During a meeting in December when Craig outlined his priorities for his last two years in office, he stated: "I’m more concerned with what I’ll be doing for the next 24 months than what I’ll be doing after those 24 months are over."

According to The Daily Record, Craig plans to make an announcement about running for governor between April and June.

On Jan. 17, Craig said the following about his future: "I am confident that the work we accomplished this past year, both in terms of fundraising and relationship development, will position me as a contender for whichever office I choose to seek."