Bennett, Shurtleff share few donors: Attorney general received lots of funds from local companies

One might guess that scores of Republicans likely give money both to Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, and his GOP brother, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff, and that such donors now face a tough choice between the two officeholders as Shurt?leff challenges Bennett for his seat.

But it turns out that vastly different types of groups have donated to each recently. In fact, only eight donors gave to both during the 2008 election cycle.

Shurtleff received much of his money through huge donations (much larger than allowed by federal law in Senate races) from corporations, which by law cannot give directly to federal candidates. The cash usually came from local groups interested in his local work as attorney general, ranging from local law firms to payday lenders.

Bennett, meanwhile, received the lion's share of his donations from national political action committees interested in national issues, with donations coming in the smaller amounts authorized by federal law.

The differences could hurt Shurtleff, who may need to find a different or expanded donor base both to comply with federal law and raise the money he needs.

Meanwhile, Shurtleff's local money base and Bennett's national base intersected only rarely, records show. For donors identified in disclosure reports, the Deseret News found a mere eight that gave to both in the 2008 cycle, including:

EnergySolutions. Its PAC gave Bennett $6,000, and the corporation gave Shurtleff $10,000.

CitiGroup (banking and securities). Its PAC gave Bennett $5,000 and gave Shurtleff $1,000.

JP Morgan Chase (banking and securities). Its PAC gave Bennett $2,000 and gave Shurtleff $1,000.

Reagan Outdoor Advertising. The company gave Shurtleff $5,000. Corporations cannot directly give to federal candidates. But the company's principals, William and Julia Reagan, individually gave Bennett a combined $4,800.

Union Pacific Railroad. Its PAC gave Bennett $2,300, and the corporation gave Shurtleff $5,000.

Frank Madsen (former top aide to Sen. Orrin Hatch) gave Bennett $500 and gave Shurtleff $400.

Former U.S. Rep. Howard Nielsen gave $2,000 to Bennett and $100 to Shurtleff.

Hy Saunders (a developer) gave $2,300 to Bennett and $100 to Shurtleff.

A major problem for Shurtleff is that the $72,000-plus he had in his state account at the end of the year (the last disclosure available) is not easily convertible for use in a federal Senate race.