Arts patrons among donors to Vic Crone's mayoral bid

Auckland mayoralty candidate Vic Crone, pictured on Mt Victoria, Devonport. 4 September 2016 New Zealand Herald Photograph by Michael Craig. NZH 20Sep16 -

Businesswoman Vic Crone's bid for the Auckland mayoralty raised $221,420 in donations over $1500, of which she received $45,000 from Parnell arts patron Fran Wyborn and $50,000 from businessman Peter Huljich through one of his companies.

Crone's electoral return shows she raised much less than her main rival, Phil Goff, who raised more than $700,00 in his successful campaign for the Auckland mayoralty.

Other people who contributed to Crone's campaign - she came second with 111,731 votes - were arts patron Dame Jenny Gibbs ($5000), Sir Ralph and Lady Pamela Norris ($5000), National Party president Peter Goodfellow ($10,000) and former National Party president Michelle Boag ($2900).

Auckland Future, the new centre-right ticket at October's local body elections, contributed $18,500 to the Crone campaign.

Crone spent $232, 216 on her campaign, about half of the $410,814 spent by Goff, who received 187,622 votes.

Crone's biggest expense was for television ($54,050), followed by campaign staff ($45,115) and communications ($39,398).

Goff and Crone vastly outspent the third place-getter Chloe Swarbrick, whose social media-focused campaign cost $8369. She got 29,098 votes. She received just one donation above the $1500 declaration threshold - $2154 from Phantom Billstickers to produce and place posters.

John Palino, who finished fourth, raised $80,704, of which $26,750 came from his own pocket, and spent $80,704. Mark Thomas, who came fifth, spent $46,782 on his campaign and received one donation over the $1500 declaration threshold.

Former Prime Minister Helen Clark and rich-lister Eric Watson were among the donors to Phil Goff's campaign, each donating $5000.

Goff's campaign manager, David Lewis, said the new mayor was left with a "good little war chest" for another campaign in 2019.

Goff said his team worked hard at fundraising, putting the big bounty down to a lot of confidence in him and an expectation he was likely to win the election.

Auckland electoral officer Dale Ofsoske yesterday said about 100 of the 800 or so candidates in the October elections had not filed returns. He planned to give them a period of grace until Wednesday before handing the matter to the police. Unsuccessful candidates who fail to file a return can be fined up to $1000. Successful candidates can be fined up to $1000 and up to $400 for every day in office until the return is filed.

The electoral returns cover the three-month period up to polling day. The spending limit for mayoral candidates was $621,504.

Goff's returns show he raised $238,056 in donations, office space, audio visual and artwork services valued above $1500 and $366,115 in proceeds from fundraising auctions. Donations of less than $1500 took total fundraising over $700,000, Lewis said.

Goff's largest cash donation of $50,000 was made by Fu Wah, the Chinese development company building the $200 million Park Hyatt Hotel in Auckland's Wynyard Quarter.

Phillip Mills, head of the Les Mills gym empire, donated $10,000; Bayleys chipped in $5000; and Cliff Cook, a retirement village businessman, donated $25,000.

Of the $366,115 auction proceeds, $150,000 was paid for a book written and signed by Chinese President Xi Jingping and purchased by a Chinese businessman, Weiguo Hong, through a company, Hong Taichi, listed at a Remuera address.

Lewis said there were strong public interest reasons for voluntarily declaring the company which purchased the book. He did not disclose the buyers of a $5 note signed by Sir Edmund Hillary that sold for $30,000 and two bottles of wine signed by John Key and Andrew Little that sold for $25,000 at the same auction in September.

Lewis said you declare donations of over $1500. The test for items sold at auctions is whether you sell things at a "reasonable market value".

"If you hold a clearly competitive auction, as we did, the sale price is a fair market value, and the monies received is for the sale of goods. It is not a donation. There is nothing in there that suggests we have done anything other than stick to the rules," Lewis said.

Goff's return shows his biggest expense was $108,220 spent on television, $47,437 on radio and $7638 on print. Other spending went on project management ($34,868), wages and contractors ($18,130) and catering for fundraising events ($22,564).