Kansan (Dem!) sticks it to election system

[n2doc]

A simple online comic strip raises heaps for his Democratic bid.
By P.J. Huffstutter, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
July 28, 2008




OLATHE, KAN. -- When Sean Tevis decided to run for a seat in the Kansas Legislature, he faced a serious problem: money. Local political advisors warned the campaign novice that he would need a war chest of at least $26,000 to compete against his entrenched Republican rival.

It seemed like a fortune to the 39-year-old Democrat. Everyone he knew here was either on a fixed income, worried about losing a job or fretting that the nation's stumbling economy could spread to this southwestern suburb of Kansas City, Kan.

In one panel, a stick-figure Tevis greets a constituent by rattling off a stream of personal facts he's found online about her -- including her birthdate, voting pattern, divorce, paycheck, credit card balances and medical history -- to illustrate his interest in protecting individual privacy.

When she slams the door in his face, the cartoon Tevis muses, "Maybe I should rethink my approach."

"I figured I'd raise a few thousand dollars, at most," for his bid to become a state representative, said Tevis, a computer systems manager who works for an industrial manufacturing company.

In fact, before he created the comic strip, Tevis spent weeks asking cash-strapped friends and family for help and walking door-to-door in the district. He raised $1,525.

The comic strip -- at www.seantevis.com/3000 -- was first posted online July 16. Today, when he files his campaign finance forms with the Kansas secretary of state's office, Tevis will report that he has raised $95,162.76 in donations through PayPal, the online service that allows payments and money transfers via the Internet.

more:

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-candidate28-2008jul28,0,1640813.story

[patrice]

1. Sean is also a very personable and friendly campaigner. He's unusually open and dynamic.

It will be interesting to see if he changes, because of the process.

[pleah]

2. K&R Great story and great cartoon.

[Karenina]

3. Interesting...

[Karenina]

4. Puzzled by scant response

:kick: