IRVINE : Agran Sets Record for Campaign Outlay

Former Mayor Larry Agran set a campaign spending record this year in his unsuccessful bid to keep his seat, according to statements filed Tuesday with the city clerk.

Agran, 45, spent $114,020 between Jan. 1 and June 30 in his campaign against Sally Anne Sheridan, who won the June 5 mayoral election. That’s the most any candidate has ever spent in an Irvine race, City Clerk Nancy C. Lacey said.

The previous spending record was set in 1986 by Thomas M. Jones, who spent about $70,000 in an unsuccessful bid for a City Council seat.

Sheridan, 55, spent $70,732 in her campaign.

The amounts were reported on disclosure forms required by state law and due on Tuesday. The forms show campaign fund-raising figures, spending, and any debt or surplus funds left over from the campaign.

Dividing the amount spent for the mayor’s seat against the number of votes garnered, Agran’s campaign spent $8.39 per vote and Sheridan’s $4.96.

The campaign expense amounts include only funds spent by the candidates’ committees. Other organizations also spent money in the mayoral campaign, most notably the conservative Lincoln Club of Orange County, which paid out $25,000 for mailers criticizing Agran for programs and policies that the group claims have increased taxes in the city.

Other City Council candidates also filed campaign-spending statements Tuesday.

William A. (Art) Bloomer, 57, reported spending $37,813 in his successful race for the council. Bloomer received the most votes in the race.

Barry J. Hammond, 38, reported spending $25,079 in his successful campaign. Bloomer and Hammond took office last month.

Unsuccessful candidate Mary Ann Gaido, 48, of the Orange County Human Relations Commission and a former city councilwoman, reported spending $32,334.