Dan Saban: Campaign photoIn the contest to see who can raise more money in the Maricopa County sheriff faceoff, it’s no contest. Joe Arpaio wins hands down. If the money hunt was an actual race, Arpaio would have lapped opponent Dan Saban close to nine times by now.

As of June 1, Arpaio had raised in excess of $430k for his election bid, and began the second part of the year with $358,357 in the bank. In the first five months of 2008 alone Arpaio raised a whopping $121,127 – more than many serious congressional candidates can manage.

By contrast, Saban, who ran against Arpaio in the 2004 Republican primary and has returned as a Democrat to take another shot at him this year, raised under $50k in the first reporting period. Though he asserts he raised $13k in June, when he “really started” his fundraising efforts, that pace still isn’t quick enough to close much ground between he and the incumbent sheriff.

According to Saban, though, that has something to do with Arpaio playing dirty.

Saban acknowledged that part of the discrepancy is due to Arpaio’s high visibility and devoted following. Self-styled as “America’s Toughest Sheriff,” Arpaio is a bestselling author and frequently featued on cable news shows for his no coddling approach to law enforcement. His unorthodox methods – including making inmates in his tent jail wear pink underwear and limiting their TV viewing to CSPAN – coupled with his zealous campaign to uncover and incarcerate illegal immigrants, has won him plaudits from admirers and fierce condemnation from critics. His partnerships with conservative legislators such as Rep. Russell Pearce (R-Mesa) and public battles with officials such as Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and Gov. Janet Napolitano keep him consistently in the public eye.

The upshot is that Sheriff Arpaio enjoys something close to 100 percent name recognition in Maricopa County – if not actually 100 percent. Saban, a two decade veteran of the Mesa Police Department, where he retired a commander, and until recently Buckeye Police Chief is by comparison an unknown.

Yet Saban sees the broad gulf between his fundraising take and Arpaio’s as the result of something more insidious.

“It’s not a normal candidacy when you’re faced with an opponent who uses scare tactics,” Saban told PolitickerAZ.com. “People will say, ‘I want to support you financially, but then my name would be on that report.’ I’ve had endorsements get phone calls from people in his administration. Those are the kinds of hurtles I have to get over. People are fearful of this guy.”

However, Saban did not go into specifics on who received phone calls or what the nature of the calls were.

Saban was sanguine about his chances, despite his underdog status. “I may not have the money in the bank, but I guarantee you, we’re getting the exposure.”

His campaign is set to start rolling out mailings and road signs, and, said Saban, they plan on airing television and radio ads too – provided there’s enough money.

What Saban really wants to do, though, is get on the same stage as Arpaio. Saban said he sent “a very polite letter” to Arpaio inviting him to a series of forums Saban plans to participate in. So far, he has not gotten a reply. Saban said it’s because Arpaio is scared to face him.

“Everything he says is inaccurate. That’s why he won’t debate me. I can dismantle the myth that he’s made.” Saban plans to go ahead with the forums: “There’ll just be an empty chair there.”

Arpaio did not respond to a request for a comment on the allegations of intimidation tactics being used against Saban supporters, but he did tell PolitickerAZ.com that he is taking the idea of debates with his opponent under consideration.

“When the time comes, I’ll send out a statement when I’ve made my decision,” said Arpaio. However, it’s not likely the decision will be anything but “no.” Said Arpaio: “I’m not going to get too involved with that guy.”