Guest Editorial: What’s Up With Linda Milhaven?

By Scottsdale Pinetop
Fundraising plays an important role in getting a candidate elected to public office, at all levels. Without sufficient sums of money, a candidate can fall short communicating. This doesn’t mean the person who raises and spends the most wins every time, but it’s true more often than not. And while there are occasional exceptions in Scottsdale like Guy Phillips and Robert Pettycrew, the rule applies there as well.
On Monday, the 2nd Quarter campaign finance reports were released. Political upstart Bill Crawford is leading the fundraising fray with over $52,000. Incumbents Kathy Littlefield and David Smith are not too far behind. But the biggest surprise was Councilwoman Linda Milhaven coming in fourth with only $26,000 raised.
This is especially surprising for an incumbent.

To put this in perspective, fellow Councilmember Suzanne Klapp had already raised $116,000 around the same time two years ago. Similarly, Councilwoman Korte had raised nearly $96,000 for her reelection endeavors, far surpassing Milhaven’s current campaign coffers. Even with the endorsement of her fellow community leaders, such as Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane, it appears that Linda Milhaven isn’t tapping into the pro-business community like Klapp and Korte did. Why? It is a question many are asking.
Running for office is an increasingly expensive proposition, even for local elections. While name recognition can be a powerful tool for winning, it doesn’t always lead to victory, just ask Dennis Robbins and Wayne Ecton among them. Most often it takes a hefty bank account to provide necessary support. Unless, Councilwoman Milhaven can raise a large amount of money in a relatively short amount of time, her final term on the Scottsdale City Council could be in jeopardy. That would be a shame because while we disagree with Milhaven on some issues, while being full throttle supporters on others, we admire Milhaven and what she brings to the Council: spine, a pro-business attitude, love for the arts and regard for the city that is second to few.