Gov. Parris N. Glendening said yesterday he will not disclose the names of contributors who have donated more than $150,000 to pay his legal expenses from last month's court challenge to his Election Day victory.
Through a spokeswoman, Mr. Glendening said he would rely on the advice of the Maryland attorney general's office and his lawyer, who say state law does not require disclosure of such contributions or who made them.
"The governor says if the head of his legal team says it's not appropriate to give it out, he supports that," said Dianna D. Rosborough, Mr. Glendening's press secretary.
Mr. Glendening ran up legal bills of more than $300,000 defending his electoral victory over his Republican opponent, Ellen R. Sauerbrey, according to Bruce L. Marcus, his lead attorney.
Mr. Marcus said the legal defense fund has received between $150,000 and $200,000 in contributions from between 40 and 50 people. He said he would not release any other information about the gifts. His figures suggest that individuals contributed an average of $3,000 to $5,000 to the fund, donations that would be in addition to any they may have made to the governor's election campaign.
By not disclosing who made the contributions and how much they gave, Mr. Glendening leaves the impression that he has something to hide, said Deborah Povich, executive director of Common Cause of Maryland, a group that monitors campaign financing. "It should be public," Ms. Povich said. "The public has an interest in knowing about the contributions of the highest elected official in the state."
Maryland Attorney General J. Joseph Curran Jr. said that while Mr. Glendening has no legal obligation to disclose the names of his contributors, it would be sound public policy.
"Those of us in public life just feel that the public has a right to know who's supporting us -- period," Mr. Curran said. "If you asked me what Joe Curran would do, I'd say, 'Here's my records. We're not going to take money from anyone we shouldn't, so what's the big deal?' "
Mrs. Sauerbrey has made public the sources of contributions to her unsuccessful legal challenge, for which she has raised more than $300,000. Among her supporters as of the end of December were the National Rifle Association, which gave $25,000; the national Republican Party, which pitched in $10,000; and her husband, Wilmer, who contributed $5,000, according to a report filed recently with the state election board. The report also showed that Mrs. Sauerbrey had raised at least $31,000 through contributions of $51 and less.
Mr. Glendening's aggressive fund raising is nothing new. After raising a record $5.2 million during his campaign for governor, he amassed another $200,000 to help pay for inaugural festivities last month. In that case, Mr. Glendening disclosed the names of the biggest contributors, mostly corporations and Annapolis lobbyists.
In December, the state attorney general's office advised lawyers for Mr. Glendening that state law did not require the disclosure of contributions and expenses incurred in fending off a post-election challenge.
In addition, state law provides no limit on the amount of money any Glendening supporter can give to the legal effort, concluded Mary O. Lunden, an assistant attorney general.
Mr. Marcus said the Glendening camp established a "Maryland 95" account for money raised for the legal fight. It is held in escrow by Mr. Marcus' Greenbelt law firm.
There have been no fund-raising events to drum up money for that account, Mr. Marcus said, but Glendening campaign staffers have made telephone solicitations for the fund.
Willie Runyon, owner of American Ambulance and Oxygen Service Co. in Baltimore, said yesterday that he contributed, but he declined to say what amount. "Just put in there that I donated to the legal defense fund," he said.
Mr. Runyon and his company also contributed $8,000 to Mr. Glendening's main campaign fund in December and at least $15,000 to the inaugural fund.
The governor's legal fees are the result of the unsuccessful suit that Mrs. Sauerbrey filed in December in Anne Arundel Circuit Court challenging her 5,993-vote loss.
In all, Mrs. Sauerbrey's unsuccessful challenge will end up costing the two sides and state and local election officials at least $900,000, with most of it going to lawyers.
Mrs. Sauerbrey established an "Election Inquiry Fund" as an arm of the Maryland Republican Party to handle the legal challenge.
"It was my belief that to try to do this in any way that would circumvent the reporting requirements would be subject to criticism," Mrs. Sauerbrey said. "We chose not to do it that way." She said that, in addition to the more than $300,000 she already has raised and spent, she still has $50,000 in bills to be paid. Her total costs should be made public next fall, when the Republican Party is scheduled to file its next campaign finance report.
President Clinton, who is raising money for legal costs associated with two investigations of his activities before he became president, has set a limit of $1,000 for any gift to his legal defense fund.
He has also made public the names of the contributors and the size of their gifts.