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Webster, NY – “I don’t have much, but I want my grandson to have a better future,” said the Grandmother from Webster as she put a handful of change into the Ziploc baggie.  With that, Paloma Capanna secured her 1,000th individual donation in her “Change-for-Change” fundraising drive that has had her door-knocking throughout the 54th Senate District since June 3rd.
 
“Near everyone I speak with is fed up with Albany,” described Capanna, “Our campaign has attracted supporters who, like me, want to achieve the goal of reforming Albany from within by winning this election.”

Capanna’s campaign has been a grassroots effort from the beginning, with a focus on the very people she will represent, if elected.  Instead of spending hours on the phone or going to New York City to chase a few big money donors, Capanna has been out, knocking on doors, attending small gatherings, and speaking at local events.
 
“It is wrong for the law to permit wealthy donors to give Senate candidates up to $15,500,” Capanna states, noting that the median household income in our area is $43,000/year.  In January 2008, Capanna signed a voluntary pledge to limit individual contributions to her campaign to $1,000.  The average individual contribution to Capanna’s campaign is $30.
 
It is Capanna’s goal to win the election so that she can work towards aggressive campaign finance reform.  “We won’t see legislation for issues like universal health insurance until we remove the big money influence from Albany through publicly-funded elections.  Our campaign is as close to a publicly funded election as they come.”
 
SD-54 includes Webster (Monroe County), Wayne County, parts of Ontario County, Seneca County, most of Cayuga County, and Lansing (Tompkins County).