FYI ... Are locals funding Fort Collins election candidates and issues? Here's what we learned - Coloradoan
Thomas Clayton
Are locals funding Fort Collins election candidates and issues? Here's what we learned
Rebecca PowellAlmost $300,000 has been raised in the 2025 Fort Collins election so far, according to campaign finance reports.
The Coloradoan analyzed the reports to determine where the money is coming from, whether that's inside Fort Collins, inside Colorado or beyond.
On the high end, one candidate had 100% of contributions come from Fort Collins residents. On the low end, that figure was 25%.
And all but one candidate had more than 58% of their funding come from Fort Collins residents.
But before we dig in to that, here are the fundraising totals by each race, as of the Oct. 21 report:
- Mayor: More than $94,000
- District 1: More than $40,000
- District 3: $20,000
- District 5: More than $25,000
More than $110,000 has been raised for various Fort Collins ballot items, including more than $75,000 between Hughes ballot questions 2H and 303.
And an additional $4,600 or so is being spent by a political committee in support of three candidates.
What are the campaign contribution limits anyway?
In Fort Collins, an individual can contribute up to a certain amount:
- $200 for mayor candidates.
- $150 for council candidates.
- No limit for issue committees.
Political parties cannot contribute to the candidates' committees.
Keep reading to learn how much in monetary and in-kind contributions the candidates have received, and where that money came from.
(Percentages have been rounded and may exceed or not reach 100%.)
More: Are you ready for the 2025 election? Your guide to Larimer County-area candidates, issuesTricia Canonico: $49,343
Out of that total, mayor candidate Canonico funded $2,200.
She had around 400 contributions from others. Of those:
- 58% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 15% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 27% were from out of state.
Adam Eggleston: $4,239
Out of that total, mayor candidate Eggleston funded $3,724.
He had seven contributions from others:
- 100% from Fort Collins residents.
Emily Francis: $11,886
Out of that total, mayor candidate Francis funded $47.
She had around 120 contributions from others. Of those:
- 89% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 8% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 3% were from out of state.
Adam Hirschhorn: $5
Mayor candidate Hirschhorn funded all of it.
Shirley Peel: $28,559
Out of that total, mayor candidate Peel funded $1,875.
She had around 180 contributions from others. Of those:
- 77% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 20% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 3% were from out of state.
Jeffrey Shumway: $5
Mayor candidate Shumway had one contribution, from a Fort Collins resident, as of the period ending on Oct. 14. He did not file the Oct. 21 report, as of the morning of Oct. 23.
Scott 'Scotty V' VanTatenhove: $0
Mayor candidate VanTatenhove is not accepting campaign contributions and has claimed none on his campaign finance reports.
Chris Conway: $25,425
Out of that total, District 1 candidate Conway funded $3,000.
He had around 290 contributions from others. Of those:
- 65% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 17% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 18% were from out of state.
Susan Gutowsky: $11,770
Out of that total, District 1 candidate Gutowsky funded $1,000.
She had around 60 contributions from others. Of those:
- 85% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 15% were from out of state.
Daisy Montgomery: $2,906
District 1 candidate Montgomery had around 30 contributions from others. Of those:
- 79% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 11% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 11% were from out of state.
Josh Fudge: $5,500
Out of that total, District 3 candidate Fudge funded $205.
He had around 60 contributions from others. Of those:
- 71% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 11% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 18% were from out of state.
Lance Smith: $1,255
District 3 candidate Smith says on his website he is funding his campaign himself, and his reports confirm that.
(This total is from Smith's most recent campaign finance report, for the period ending Sept. 29.)
Steve Yurash: $13,245
Out of that total, District 3 candidate Yurash funded $11,500.
He had around 20 contributions from others. Of those:
- 94% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 6% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
Amy Hoeven: $17,783
Out of that total, District 5 candidate Hoeven funded $5,808.
She had around 150 contributions from others. Of those:
- 95% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 3% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 2% were from out of state.
Zoelle Lane: $7,597
Out of that total, District 5 candidate Lane funded $105.
She had around 150 contributions from others. Of those:
- 25% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 12% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 63% were from out of state.
Friends of Hughes Natural Area: $23,499
This issue committee's purpose is to pass Ballot Measure 303, a citizen initiative to preserve all of the former Hughes Stadium property as a Fort Collins Natural Area.
The committee had around 100 contributions. Of those:
- 97% were from Fort Collins.
- 1% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 2% were from out of state.
The largest contributions came from PATHS, or Planning Action to Transform Hughes Sustainably, a related community group, totaling $2,900.
Hughes for Everyone: $51,778
This issue committee is raising money in support of Ballot Measure 2H, a city-referred ballot question asking to make the former Hughes Stadium property a multiuse recreation, nature and wildlife site.
The committee had around 225 contributions. Of those:
- 97% were from Fort Collins residents.
- 1% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- 1% were from out of state.
The reports show that more than $40,000 of the total funding came from five individuals or organizations.
- Two members of the board of directors for the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, one from Arizona and another from Fort Collins, each gave $10,000, for a total of $20,000.
- Fort Collins-based Rocky Mountain Raptor Center gave $10,000.
- Fort Collins-based Overland Mountain Bike Club gave $5,000.
- An in-kind contribution from Fort Collins-based Dude Dad Inc. in the form of video production and distribution was valued at $5,000.
Yes to Natural Areas: $34,782
This issue committee's purpose is to pass Ballot Measure 302, a citizen initiative that would continue a quarter-cent sales tax for Fort Collins Natural Areas, without sunset.
The committee had around 100 contributions. Of those:
- 93% were from Fort Collins.
- 6% were from elsewhere in Colorado.
- Less than a percent were from out of state.
Six donors alone, all from Fort Collins, gave more than $1,000 apiece and are responsible for about half of the total amount raised.
New Era Colorado Action Fund: $4,655
This political committee's stated purpose is "to elect champions to Fort Collins City Council for young people aged 18-34 and their top issues, particularly reproductive rights, economic justice, climate justice, and democracy reform."
100% of the contributions came from the New Era Colorado Action Fund.
The committee spent all of the money on materials for mayor candidate Emily Francis, District 1 candidate Chris Conway and District 5 candidate Zoelle Lane.
 | Tom Clayton Communication and Media Specialist, Public Affairs |
| Commissioners' Office 200 W Oak St, Fort Collins, 80522 | 2nd Floor W: (970) 498-7005 tcla...@larimer.org | www.larimer.org |