State contractors fill campaign coffers of Georgia politicians

In the midst of his heated re-election campaign last year, Gov. Nathan Deal touched down in Missouri and was whisked to a reception and a dinner at the elegant St. Louis Club.

There, he was feted by top executives from Centene, a state contractor that has been paid nearly $4 billion over the past five years to provide health insurance to Medicaid and PeachCare recipients in Georgia. Deal left Missouri with his campaign account fatter; Centene executives poured more than $40,000 into the Republican's re-election bid.

Such fundraising isn't unusual for Georgia politicians. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution investigation found that over the past five years, Deal's campaign and political action committees have collected more than $1.8 million from about 90 of the state's biggest vendors or their executives and family members.

The flow of cash between politicians and companies hoping to win or retain lucrative government business has been in the spotlight since DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis was accused of strong-arming contractors into contributing. Ellis was found guilty earlier this month of trying to shake down Power and Energy Services, an Austell business, for a $2,500 campaign contribution and threatening to end its $250,000 contract with the county. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

One city leader said the verdict sent "a shock wave" though political circles among officials who are typically aggressive in soliciting money from vendors.

“I know there are a lot of people who made similar phone calls,” said Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul, a longtime Capitol lobbyist and former senator. “That kind of sent a wake-up call to a lot of elected officials who thought this was OK.”