As much as we might wish otherwise, money is an important part of running for office. The candidate with the most money doesn’t always win, of course; but having enough money to do what you need to win is obviously important.
The other thing about fund-raising is that getting someone to be an individual donor usually also guarantees their vote for you, and possibly their time and public support. (That’s one reason individual contributions are so important.)
Here’s a quick rundown of campaign finance reports released recently:
3rd Congressional Dem Nomination – Morgan McGarvey vs Attica Scott
McGarvey has dramatically outraised Scott, with his 4th quarter report of $800,000 in contributions being about 10 times Scott’s $82,000.
He also has about $712,000 cash on hand, versus her $21,500.
Note, though, that a number of analysts say that in this race, money is not the best indicator, and think Scott could still win this nomination.
U.S. Senate – Charles Booker vs Rand Paul
Paul raised about $3.8 million in the 4th quarter, and has almost $8 million cash on hand as of the end of 2021.
Meanwhile, the Booker campaign reported raising $650,000 in the 4th quarter, with only $411,000 cash on hand at year end.
Booker notes, though, that he got massively outspent by the McGrath campaign in 2020 – and almost won anyway.
Other Congressional races
Cash on hand for each major candidate:
1st – Comer (R) – $591,921
2nd – Guthrie (R) – $2,336,233
2nd – Henning (R) – $12,645
2nd – Linderman (D) – $11,923
4th – Massie (R) – $157,814
4th – Wirth (R) – -$23,050
5th – Rogers (R) – $830,277
6th – Barr (R) – $1,914,550
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