VISTA -- Candidates for the Vista Unified school board were required to file their first round of campaign finance documents by Thursday evening, giving an early snapshot of how much money each has to spend in the district's closely watched school board race.

Incumbent Jim Gibson appeared to have raised the most money during the filing period between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, collecting about $6,000, he said.

In Vista Unified, six candidates are vying for two open four-year seats in the Nov. 7 election. The candidates for the five-member board are Cody Campbell, 20; Gibson, 52; Carol Herrera, 68; Patty Anderson, 44; Elizabeth Jaka, 49; and Mickey Sanders, 62.

Candidates were required to either deliver the financial statements by 5 p.m. Thursday or have them postmarked by that time.

Only Sanders' forms were available from the county registrar of voters office Thursday afternoon, however the other candidates said they had all submitted their forms by mail or fax.

Campbell, Herrera and Jaka provided copies of their forms to the North County Times, and Gibson and Anderson discussed their campaign finances in interviews.

Gibson, an Oceanside resident who owns a voice and data systems company, said Thursday that he has spent about $2,000 of the $6,000 he's raised on signs and other campaign expenses.

These numbers could increase quickly as the election gathers momentum. In 2002, Gibson spent more than $43,000 on his campaign. He said he expects to raise a similar amount this time.

Gibson, who first won a seat on the board eight years ago and was re-elected four years later, said he has enjoyed campaigning for the seat.

"There has always been a lot of passion in this particular school board race," Gibson said.

Anderson, a Vista resident who teaches oceanography and earth sciences at Cal State San Marcos, Palomar and MiraCosta colleges, has raised more than $4,500 so far, she said.

Most of that money has come from $20 and $50 donations, she said, but she has received a couple large donations, including $2,500 from Vista Unified school board Trustee Stephen Guffanti and $2,000 from Reed Miller, a member of the Vista Fire Protection District board.

With that money, and some of her own, Anderson said she has spent nearly $4,000 on signs and other campaign costs.

Between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, incumbent Herrera, a former teacher and principal who was first elected to the board four years ago, gathered $2,696 in donations. Couple that with $1,000 she loaned to her campaign fund and she has $3,895 to spend. As of Sept. 30, the Vista resident said she hadn't used any of it.

A California Teachers Association political action committee, however, spent $199 last week on services for her and Sanders' campaigns, according to both candidates' campaign disclosure forms.

The local branch of the teachers union traditionally has played a large role in school board campaigns, sinking roughly $30,000 into promoting the candidates it endorses. This election, the union is backing Herrera and Sanders.

As of Sept. 30, Sanders, a retired teacher who lives in Vista, hadn't received any donations, starting and ending the period with only $50 in his campaign fund.

Cody Campbell, a college student and former student member of the Vista Unified school board, showed four contributions to his campaign, totaling $650, as well as smaller donations that are not required to be listed separately.

Overall, Campbell's campaign took in contributions totaling $1,069 and he loaned himself $1,500, giving him $2,569 for the election.

The Vista resident has also spent the most, paying $1,400 for campaign literature and mailers, $410 in filing fees and $129 for postage.

Jaka, a former day-care professional who lives in Oceanside, received only $99 in donations, she stated. However, she has loaned herself $3,500 loan to get her campaign started.

In the first nine months of the year, she spend $622 on signs and brochures, leaving her with just less than $3,000.

"It's been slow getting started," Jaka said, "but I'm still pretty optimistic as far as financing is concerned."

Contact staff writer Stacy Brandt at (760) 631-6622 or sbrandt@nctimes.com.