Editor, Gazette-Journal:

I have been following the budgets of Gloucester County and the schools for many years. I know that our county government works best when citizens care enough to monitor where our taxes are used and hold elected supervisors and school board officials accountable for the decisions they make about spending our money.

For the same reason, and just as important, the financing of political campaigns needs to be examined and understood. Knowing the level of campaign donations, where they come from and where that money is spent can be very informative for the voter.

I have reviewed local campaign finance reports in detail by going to the Department of Elections website. My research indicates that past magisterial district supervisor races have been in the range of $3,000 to $5,000. Interestingly, one wealthy candidate and his family in one rural magisterial district is reporting $18,000 as of Aug. 31 (three to four times the average) in his bid to unseat the ...