The finance reports are coming in. In the governor’s race, incumbent Pat McCrory released what he thought was an impressive haul of $2.6 million dollars only to be outdone by challenger Roy Cooper who raised $2.9 million. McCrory’s spokesperson, Ricky Diaz, lamely responded that Cooper must be spending too much time raising money.
In the Senate raise, incumbent Richard Burr added a $818,000 to his now more than $5 million war chest but 42% of it came from PACs. His likely opponent Democrat Deborah Ross brought in an impressive $585,000 and I imagine almost all of that came from real people. Regardless of the cash-on-hand discrepancy, Ross is showing the viability to attract bigger money from both national donors and the SuperPACs that can quickly level the playing field.
In the lieutenant governor’s race Holly Jones, (in full disclosure, a candidate who is a client of mine) raised almost $200,000, an impressive haul for a first-time statewide candidate who lives outside of a major media market. In the attorney general’s race, Democrat Josh Stein continues to impress with more than $500,000 raised and almost $1.5 million cash-on-hand. And that’s about it for the campaigns who have released reports so far.
The fundraising game is about showing viability and the ability to put together a campaign. Candidates who release their totals early want the attention of the media. They are sending a signal to donors, potential donors, and the political class that they have impressive numbers. They want the press to take notice.
On the other hand, most candidates who hold off until the last day are trying to hide something. They are hoping their numbers get lost in the mix when dozens of finance reports come in at the same time. This year, in particular, they’ve got a good chance that a poor showing might not get much scrutiny. Reports are due on Friday, the day most political folks dump their bad news anyway.
While money might play an outsized role in politics, it’s still a measure of viability. Raising money proves that candidates have built networks and support. It shows a commitment of people to particular candidates and it still predicts which candidates have the best chances of winning.
Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Thomas spent twenty years as a political and public affairs consultant. Learn more >
Given the response from the McCrory spokesperson, it would be interesting to know both how many donors gave to each campaign and just how many times Gov. McCrory did a fund raiser versus Cooper, as well as the amounts raised on line. If Cooper raised a lot on line, that would mean he was not out meeting folks, or on the phone begging.