Erik Moe: Critic at Large

Not long ago, I was complaining about the complete lack of openness surrounding Philly elections. The veil of near-secrecy surrounding campaign contributions was officially lifted this week when the City Controller’s office posted PDF scans of donation reports from mayoral candidates. This Inquirer article suggests that a more useful searchable database of contributions will follow before long (I can only hope that some enterprising young Geography junkies will find some creative ways to present the data).

In glancing through the lists of donors, I noticed that all the moneyed names I used to spellcheck during my years working in the non-profits arts sector seem to be behind Michael Nutter’s campaign. Meanwhile, Chakah Fattah’s “exploratory” campaign is being bankrolled by a $200,000 check from Comcast’s H.F. “Gerry” Lenfest. Anyone for “campaign finance reform?”

Inky: Lenfest donation raises eyebrows