Joe Sheehan raises nearly $2 million in attempt to get $57,408 salary
Just under 10% of the donations came from individuals
SHEBOYGAN — The former Superintendent of the Sheboygan Area School District raised almost $2 million in his bid to become a State Representative.
Democrat Joe Sheehan reported raising $1,897,249.79 between May 6th and December 31st, 2024. According to campaign finance reports filed with the State of Wisconsin, just $178,459.97 or approximately 9.41% was raised from individuals. The remaining $1.6 million came from the Democratic Party and special interest groups. Sheehan won by 845 votes, unseating incumbent Republican Amy Binsfeld, who reported raising $384,026.
Sheehan received large sums of campaign donations from individuals living outside of Wisconsin. The most out-of-state money came from New York. Sheehan was receiving cash from California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Texas and Florida.
The $1,000 Club
There were 16 individuals who donated the maximum amount allowed by law.
Peter Madden: Sheboygan
Diane Ebenreiter: Sheboygan
John C. Miller: Kohler
Kurt Kober: Sheboygan (Vice President)
John W. Miller: Fox Point (Principal)
Jeffrey Meessmann: Boulder Junction (Inventor)
Nicholas Josefowitz: San Francisco, California (Executive)
Mark Heising: Atherton, California (Managing Director)
Donald Philips: San Francisco, California
Scott Shenker: Berkeley, California (Scientist)
James Ingraham: Beaumont, Texas (Software Developer)
Jonathan Rosen: New York City, New York (Public Relations)
Daniel Smith: New Paltz, New York (Software Engineer)
Leslie Williams: Bedford Hills, New York (Lawyer)
Peter Case: Providence, Rhode Island (Architect)
Susan Hall: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Democratic Party funded Sheehan’s run
With just under 10% of donations coming from individuals, a good chunk of that was coming from outside of Sheboygan County. Sheehan’s campaign was mostly funded by the Democratic Party. The Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee funneled $1,275,106 to Sheehan while the Democratic Party of Wisconsin donated $118,627. Special interests groups based in Washington, DC donated $5,500.
Labor unions also gave big dollars to Sheehan’s campaign. The funds were spent on direct mail, consulting fees, television and digital advertising. Most interesting, yard signs were printed in Virginia while postcards and literature were printed in Maryland.
Binsfeld well behind in fundraising
Binsfeld reported raising $384,026.10 in her attempt to keep her seat in the State Assembly. Of that amount, $339,366.17 came from the Republican Party of Wisconsin and political action committees. There were 10 individuals who donated $1,000. Nine of them live in Wisconsin including Terry Katsma, Ward Torke, Heather Liebham, Kim Bassett, Richard Cullen, Dwight Davis, Rick Gill, George Cullen, Vinson Egle. The largest out-of-state donor was Sam Younes of Palm Beach, Florida.
The Republican Party of Wisconsin donated $82,891.76 while the Republican Assembly Campaign Committee chipped in $234,600.56. How were the funds spent? Just some of the campaign expenses included $19,764.20 on radio advertising, over $82,000 on postcards and over $135,000 was spent on digital advertising.
What’s next for Binsfeld? According to her most recent campaign finance report filed last month, she has been paying $24 per month to maintain a website that is not accessible to the public. A hint that she may be looking for a rematch against Sheehan next year. Binsfeld has $7,024.88 in her campaign bank account while Sheehan has reported having just $1,979.96 available to spend. However, he reported raising $2,505.50 between January 1st and June 30th. He then proceeded to spend $3,752.57.
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