DEAR SUN SPOTS: Can you tell me what happens to the political re-election funds of any candidate who changes their mind and decides not to run? I am thinking of U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe, who raised millions to run and now has decided not to do so.

I am sure there must be a procedure in each political party to handle such incidences. Can you tell me as I am just curious and know this is not specific to any one political party. — Peter J. Blake, Auburn

ANSWER: The funds raised belong to the campaign, not to Snowe herself, so she cannot just keep the money, nor can any candidate.

According to an April 24 story by Steve Mistler of the Portland Press Herald:

“Federal elections law allows Snowe several options for the money after the campaign pays off its debts, including creating a political action committee to support candidates, refunding donors or giving the money to the Maine Republican Party.

“According to Bob Biersack of the Center for Responsive Politics, retiring congressional candidates chose many of the above options. Many, he said, give the money to their state party to assist in legislative and congressional elections.”

In the same story, Mistler said that Snowe has announced that her campaign may not give those funds, estimated at about $2.36 million, to the Republican candidate hoping to succeed her in the Senate. Instead, she may use those funds to support “‘like-minded’ candidates, a center to give ‘a national voice’ to the ‘sensible center’ and an institute to promote Maine women leaders.”

mentalfloss.com offers this on campaign funds:

“The Federal Election Commission has strict rules about what federal candidates can and can’t do with leftover campaign money, and the biggest commandment is that they can’t pocket it for personal use. Here’s what a campaign committee is allowed to do with any lingering cash: it can donate the funds to charities or political parties; it can contribute $2,000 per election to other candidates; and it can save the money in case the candidate chooses to run again.

“In reality, though, there’s rarely a giant pot of money for losing candidates to play with. Running a campaign is an expensive proposition — Barack Obama spent more than $700 million on his 2008 White House bid — and insufficient cash is often the reason campaigns go belly up.

“As for winning politicians, they’ll often put their leftover funds toward their next race. If they choose not to run, they have to abide by the same rules. Oddly, this wasn’t always the case. Until 1993, U.S. Representatives who took office before Jan. 8, 1980, were allowed to keep any leftover campaign change when they retired.”

As Peter notes, these rules apply to both parties. Readers may remember that Hillary Rodham Clinton’s 2008 presidential primary campaign ended deeply in debt. According to an April 16 post on politico.com, Clinton, John Edwards and Rudy Giuliani are all still paying off campaign debts.

DEAR SUN SPOTS: Thank you for printing my letter April 8 regarding the indoor yard sale at High Street Congregational Church in Auburn. However — oops! — I made a mistake regarding the date.

It should say: The sale will be held Saturday May 5, from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. We are still renting 8-foot tables for $10 each.

If interested, call me at 782-2835. Again, thank you for all you do. — Connie Ray, Auburn

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