Though Mark Solomon had already given $15,000 in October to Tom Wolf, he didn't have to think for more than one minute to donate again when he got a call from the campaign asking to help with unpaid expenses.

"I knew what I was buying," said Solomon, 76, the retired founder of a real estate and private equity business in Gladwyne, which is about 25 minutes northwest of Philadelphia. "I didn't know Tom Wolf was going to win when I made the original gift."

Solomon — who gave an additional $10,000 on Nov. 14 — is one of at least 131 people and political committees who donated to Wolf's campaign after Election Day, according to his last two campaign finance reports, the latest of which was released on Monday. In all, Wolf's campaign reported receiving at least $289,687 in donations from individuals and political committees during that period. The single largest donor was the Comcast Corporation & NBC Universal Political Action Committee, which gave $50,000 on Dec. 16.

The practice of giving money to a campaign right after an election is not unprecedented, said G. Terry Madonna, a political science professor and director of the Franklin & Marshall College Poll. He said there are a few possible explanations, including that there's often a delay from the time a person decides to give to when they actually donate. And, generally speaking, Madonna said, campaigns often finish up in debt.

Wolf's campaign reported ending the year with more than $60,000, but that's not the case for one of his competitors from the Democratic primary. Rob McCord, the former state treasurer who plans to plead guilty to federal extortion charges, listed on May 9 — the latest numbers available — having $2.2 million of debt.


Roy Temple, an adviser to Wolf's campaign, said in an email the date listed on the reports is when the donations were received. He said as a common practice the campaign is continuing to raise some money to pay for the ongoing costs of maintaining a political committee.

Dave Heltzel, the president and CEO of a firm in Springettsbury Township that specializes in museum design, said he thought giving money to Wolf after the election could help him get more like-minded people into political office. Heltzel said he's tired of the fighting between Democrats and Republicans, as well as politicians who are removed from the problems of everyday people.

"I look at Tom as the anti-politician," said Heltzel, 59, who gave $100 on Nov. 17. "He's a guy who wants to get things done."

To Lynne Danyo, 74, a retired financial adviser and Democrat from Spring Garden Township, she couldn't imagine the need for money stopped after Election Day.

Danyo said she met Wolf's mother shortly after moving to the area in 1968.

She said Wolf, who she's met several times, is someone who could take Pennsylvania to a "level that it maybe hasn't seen for a while" and that he has good fundamental values. Wolf's latest report shows Danyo gave $100 on Dec. 11, and past filings list two previous donations of $250.

She said she's met Wolf on several occasions and that he made a "very generous" contribution to the Baskets of York program. The project, which Danyo co-chairs, is looking to put 150 baskets of flowers up around the city this year, she said.

Bill Ebel, 82, a retired facilities planning and telecommunications manager who lives in Lancaster, said he gave money because he's optimistic that Wolf will have solutions to problems the state is facing. He said the No. 1 issue to him is education.

Ebel, a Republican and former Manheim Township supervisor, donated $100 on Dec. 11. He said he was cautious given his financial situation after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in March.

"I just thought he's spent a lot of time and effort, he contributed a lot of his own money," Ebel said. "I was impressed by his manner and way of dealing with the world."