Civic Tracker Offers Look at the Money Behind Burbank’s City Council Campaigns

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Burbank voters looking to follow the money in this year’s City Council race can compare campaign fundraising, spending and donor locations through an independent website that organizes public campaign finance filings.

Burbank Civic Tracker brings those records together in a searchable format, allowing residents to compare candidates and examine the contributions behind their campaigns. Its figures through October 22 show Nikki Perez leading in the site’s fundraising totals, while David Donahue leads in dollars attributed to Burbank addresses.

The figures offer a snapshot ahead of the November 3 election, when voters may select up to three City Council candidates.

According to the tracker, Perez had raised $48,570, followed by Donahue at $47,385 and Samantha Wick at $37,975. However, the geographic breakdown shows a different order: Donahue’s campaign received $32,035 from Burbank addresses, compared with $27,450 for Wick and $13,100 for Perez.

The site calculates Burbank’s share of geographically identifiable contributions at approximately 68 percent for Donahue, 72 percent for Wick and 27 percent for Perez.

The tracker’s City Council comparison lists the following amounts:

CandidateRaised on trackerFrom Burbank addresses
Nikki Perez$48,570$13,100
David Donahue$47,385$32,035
Samantha Wick$37,975$27,450
Eddy Polon$25,593$6,650
Jackie Waltman$23,750$21,350
Hovanes Tonoyan$21,200$21,000
Mike Van Gorder$15,525$8,400
Tamala Takahashi$8,790$3,160
Nolan Southerland$8,425$3,210
Robbie Brody$6,834$3,379
Chris Yoosefi$2,210$400
Jonathan Ontiveros$2,200$1,200

Source: Civic Tracker’s City Council comparison, with data through October 22, 2026. Figures reflect the website’s methodology and completeness limitations.

The numbers require some context. Civic Tracker says its fundraising measure excludes loans and noncash contributions. It also warns that totals for contributions under $100 had not yet been read from 31 electronic reports. For those reports, its displayed fundraising amounts include only contributions listed by name, meaning the figures should not be treated as complete campaign receipts.

The website also incorporates certain late contribution reports filed after a campaign’s latest regular disclosure statement. Waltman’s displayed total includes $20,000 from those reports, while Tonoyan’s includes $21,000. Those amounts are included in the totals above, rather than added on top of them.

Geographic comparisons have limitations as well. The site determines location from reported donor ZIP codes. Contributions under $100 that are not itemized by name have no donor address available for that analysis. A campaign’s local percentage therefore describes the money the tracker can geographically identify, rather than necessarily every dollar it has received.

Beyond fundraising, residents can examine reported spending, search donors and employers, explore ZIP codes and access filed documents. The site links to Burbank’s campaign disclosure portal, allowing readers to consult the underlying public records.

Civic Tracker identifies itself as an independent project created by Culver City Studio Works, with no government or campaign affiliation.

For voters, the website provides a starting point for examining campaign finances and asking more informed questions about who is contributing. Its totals remain a snapshot of the records processed, subject to updates as additional filings and information become available.

Residents can explore the records at burbank.civictracker.app.

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