Political campaigns can be confusing.

While there surely have been more negative political races in the past, the gubernatorial race between incumbent Gov. Don Siegelman and U.S. Rep. Bob Riley is fast becoming a mind numbing experience.

Earlier this week, both Siegelman and Riley released their campaign finance reports. Since May, it was reported that Riley has raised $6.5 million, while Siegelman has raised $2.6 million.

Obviously, candidates believe their ability to raise money reflects the amount of support (and the number of votes) they will receive in the election. Riley’s campaign boasted that his ability to raise money &uot;is a clear indication that the people of Alabama are responding to Bob Riley’s message of change,&uot; according to spokesman David Azbell.

Siegelman’s campaign replied:

The truth is, we shouldn’t read too much into money raised. We also shouldn’t read to much into polls. We need to vote our conscience and the issues.

For the majority of citizens, we haven’t opened our checkbooks to either candidate. We haven’t attended a Birmingham reception that featured President George W. Bush. We haven’t driven to Montgomery and handed Siegelman a check or written him one when he visited Selma.

Rather, most of us are honest, hard-working citizens who spend our money on the kids’ education and the meals on the table. We could care less about how much money each candidate raises.

The only way campaign finances will affect us is the number of times we see Siegelman’s or Riley’s mug on TV. The money those candidates have on hand will be spent smearing the other guy, while the majority of citizens will wonder which candidate will provide the best leadership for the next four years.

The most important thing as we near the election is to make sure we vote. All indications are that the governor’s race will be close and we in Selma should have a very good understanding of the value of a vote in a close race.