by Steve Haner

As of the last round of campaign finance reports, Dominion Energy Virginia is smoking its political nemesis Clean Virginia in donation totals, with more than $11 million given compared to $3.2 million. At $14.3 million in combined donations, the two are well on their way to matching or exceeding the $23 million they spent two years ago.  

What is this unrestrained bidding war accomplishing? A powerful monopoly utility is getting much more powerful, and Virginia’s political process is taking on a deeper odor of corruption. It is important for those who think facts and arguments and public input decide issues at the General Assembly to get a dose of realpolitik. 

The reports available on the Virginia Public Access Project track giving through the end of June, and the next round of reports will add in the totals for July and August.  Those are due September 15, just as early voting starts.  The amounts discussed here are just for this election cycle, donations in 2024 and for 2025 through the primary.

The House of Delegates and the three top statewide offices are on the ballot this year, but the state Senate is not. Despite that, Dominion has made large contributions to several senators in both parties, mainly those in leadership positions or on committees that consider energy bills. 

Virginia law allows all this. Virginia’s voters tolerate all this. Nobody really tries to make it a political issue because the powerful floor leaders and committee chairs in their own parties are the ones taking the money. Some cash has gone to campaign accounts and some to leadership political action committees, used to reinforce their power with their peers.  ‘Tis a distinction without a difference.

Is any House Democrat going to lay into Dominion and risk the ire of Speaker of the House Don Scott (D-Portsmouth) who has received almost $1.6 million in 18 months? How about the chairman of House Appropriations, Luke Torian, who has taken in $363,000? Are they ready to take their bills into the committees chaired by Democrats Senator Mamie Locke ($585,000 this cycle), Louise Lucas ($208,000 this cycle) or Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell ($335,000 to date.) Do not expect a peep about Dominion dollars out of their gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger, either.

Some of the totals are impressive on the Republican side, of course, but overall Democrats are getting more from Dominion so far. Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares has accepted $850,000 (just this cycle) for his campaign and political action committee. That is more than triple the $260,000 Dominion has given Republican gubernatorial nominee Winsome Earle-Sears as of June 30.

Former House Republican Leader Todd Gilbert received a total of $660,000 for his campaign and leadership committees before resigning for a federal post. His replacement Terry Kilgore has so far seen $197,500 for his two campaign accounts. Combined they are still swamped by the $1.6 million given to Speaker Scott, money working to keep Republican in the minority.  

And as with the Democrats, key Republican senators (who are not on the ballot) have received large amounts — $240,000 each for Mark Obenshain and Senate Republican Leader Ryan McDougle. Obenshain is on that crucial Commission for Electric Utility Regulation (CEUR), as are senators Surovell and Lucas mentioned above.   

Dominion also blew significant sums on failed statewide candidates on the Democratic side, $800,000 for Shannon Taylor and $418,000 for Levar Stoney. Sorry, stockholders, it probably came out of your dividends, not executive compensation. None of this money is supposed to be charged to ratepayers, and regulators do audit that.  

At the statewide level, the three successful Democrats have Clean Virginia in their “top donor” VPAP list. 

That starts with Abigail Spanberger, recipient of $465,000 from Clean Virginia and Attorney General candidate Jay Jones, receiving more than $1.1 million. Most of its other donations so far are smaller by today’s inflated standards, but Clean Virginia’s list of recipients to date is longer than Dominion’s. Not that long ago $20,000 to $50,000 was considered big bucks.

Clean Virginia gave more than $6 million in the 2022-23 election cycle, so expect it to show up heavily in the final days of this campaign. Unlike Dominion, it is not concentrating large donations on incumbent senators who are not on the ballot. Charlottesville Democrat Creigh Deeds, chair of Senate Commerce and Labor and also on the CEUR, has taken only $10,000 so far this cycle. 

Looking back, this post from 2021 about much smaller amounts of money ($100,000 on one side and $25,000 on the other) illustrates just what has happened since. Then check out this table from another 2021 post, listing 2020 contributions that were smaller by a factor of ten. Here is the opening paragraph of the 2021 post:

The first major showdown over last-ditch efforts to change the rules on the coming Dominion Energy Virginia rate case occurs Monday in a subcommittee where six delegates received a total of $80,000 from the utility in 2020, and four received $67,500 from its self-appointed watchdog Clean Virginia.

Such quaint sums by today’s standards, just four years ago. Buying influence is getting expensive. Virginia, 1) this is just insane and 2) this observer is not and is tired of beating his head on this wall. Adding to the weariness, there is no reason to think the “independent” media watchdogs will raise cane about this if the candidates do not. Also, VPAP no longer sorts the donations by committee, which made that 2021 table possible without personally compiling it. 

 You get fourteen million guesses why not.