Paul Berry Tops District 7 Fundraising With $116K In House Of Delegates Race

Correction: An earlier version of this story contained incorrect information about Karen Keys-Gamarra's top donors. Donations from her previous campaigns as a school board member were mistakenly included. The story has been corrected.

RESTON, VA — While Tuesday's primary will decide who will be the Democrat on the November ballot for the open District 7 seat in the Virginia House of Delegates, one of the four candidates appears to have won the battle for campaign fundraising.

Paul Berry, an educator with 20 years of experience, has raised $116,496 since announcing his candidacy in February, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. That's about $26,000 more than the $89,607 raised by Shyamali Hauth, the former legislative adviser to Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn.

The two other candidates in the race, former Fairfax County School Board Member Karen Keys Gamarra and space engineer Mary Barthelson, raised $65,254 and $16,149, respectively.

Early voting in the District 7 race ends on Saturday, with the Democratic Party primary taking place next Tuesday. The primary is open to all registered voters in Fairfax County, even those who may identify themselves as Republicans or independents.

The winner of Tuesday's primary will represent the Democratic Party on the Nov. 7 ballot. No Republican candidate has filed to run in the District 7 race. Candidates must file by 7 p.m., on Tuesday if they intend to be on the ballot in the November. Political parties have a June 26 filing deadline.

The following are the top donors and the industry they represent for each of the four candidates, as of June 8:

Paul Berry - Top Donors

• $10,000 - Vinton Cerf (IT-Internet)
• $10,000 - Sonjia S Smith (Retired)
• $10,000 - Virginia Latino Caucus (PAC)
• $9,250 - Berry LIE Fund (Non-Profit)
• $8,500 - Paul D Berry (Candidate)
• $5,000 - Virginia Latino Caucus (PAC)
• $3,500 - Paul D Berry (Candidate)
• $2,500 - AFSCME - American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (PAC)
• $2,000 - Martha Berry (Educator)
• $2,000 - James Winchester (Retired)

Shyamali Hauth - Top Donors

• $10,000 - Sonjia Smith (Retired)
• $7,000 - Indian American Impact
• $6,344 - Christopher Hauth (Management Consultants)
• $5,000 - Clean Virginia Fund (Environmental)
• $5,000 - Lawrence Hess
• $4,000 - Kathy Tran for Delegate (Candidate PAC)
• $3,446 - Shyamali Hauth (Candidate)
• $3,000 - John Hauth (Physician)
• $2,500 - VoteVets Federal PAC
• $2,500 - Walter Alcorn for Fairfax County Supervisor (Candidate Committee)

Karen Keys-Gamarra - Top Donors

• $15,000 - Friends of Delegate Ken Plum (Candidate Committee)
• $8,352 - Karen Keys-Gamarra for Fairfax County School Board (Candidate Committee)
• $5,000 - Clean Virginia Fund (Environmental)
• $5,000 - Edward Rice (Private Equity/Investors)
• $3,000 - Hugh E Taylor (Defense - Miscellaneous)
• $2,000 - Whitfield A Russell & Associates PC (Electric Utilities)
• $1,500 - John Farrell (Attorney/Law Firms)
• $1,000 - Christopher Kimm (IT-Hardware)
• $1,000 - Saslaw for State Senate (Candidate Committee)
• $1,000 - Elizabeth Murphy (Engineer)

Mary Barthelson - Top Donors

• $5,000 - Clean Virginia Fund (Environmental)
• $1,251 - Walker Boyd (Construction)
• $1,000 Manoharsingh SURANA (IT-General)
• $943 - Mary Barthelson (Candidate)
• $750 - Jesse Knight (Information Technology)
• $550 - Andrew Geraci (Services - Haircare, Drycleaners, Etc.)
• $500 - Armin Khanzadeh (Non-Wage Earners)
• $499 - Elatigh Abba (Unknown/Abba General Trading)
• $400 - Elza Daniel (Services - Haircare, Drycleaners, Etc)
• $250 - Ron Barnes (Non-Wage Earners)

A look at the candidates' top donors reveals that while Berry raked in the most campaign dollars, Keys-Gamarra received the largest donation — $15,000 from Friends of Delegate Ken Plum. This isn't too surprising since Plum, who represented Reston for over 40 years in House of Delegates, endorsed Keys-Gamarra.

Also of interest are the donations from John Farrell and Saslaw for State Senate. Farrell was a candidate in the District 7 race early on, but he later withdrew to focus on his Reston Association Board of Directors campaign.

Like Plum, Richard Saslaw, the majority leader in the State Senate, chose not to seek reelection in November.

Related:

• Watch Virtual Candidate Forum In District 7 House Of Delegates Race
• Mary Barthelson Running In June 20 Democratic Party Primary: Profile
• Paul Berry Running In June 20 Democratic Party Primary: Profile
• Shyamali Hauth Running In June 20 Democratic Party Primary: Profile
• Karen Keys-Gamarra Runs In June 20 Democratic Party Primary: Profile