U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) is trying to hold on to her congressional seat, and new filings show that Ms. Kaptur is outpacing her opponent, state Rep. Derek Merrin (R. Monclova Township), in fund-raising.
In the District 9 race, Ms. Kaptur’s campaign Kaptur for Congress has raised more than $950,000 in the second quarter, bringing her total raised to nearly $3 million. She is ending quarter two with $2.6 million on hand, having spent a little more than $699,000.
“Our campaign has seen a groundswell of support from Republicans, Democrats, and Independents across the district who know that Marcy Kaptur is on the frontlines fighting for seniors and working families,” Alexandra Wilcox, Ms. Kaptur’s campaign manager, said.
Her opponent’s campaign, Merrin for Congress, has raised more than $412,000 in the second quarter, bringing his total raised to nearly $669,000. He is ending quarter two with just over $408,000, which is a significant jump for Mr. Merrin since he ended the first quarter with a little more than $88,000 on hand. Mr. Merrin has spent just over $260,000. The Blade reached out to Mr. Merrin’s campaign, who did not have any additional comments.
“In the world of politics, 88 grand just isn’t very much money,” Peter Loge, a professor at George Washington University, said of the first quarter filing. “If I had been the Republican National Committee, had I seen that in March, I would have made a phone call and said, ‘Look, you need to either step it up, or we’re just going to abandon you.’”
Mr. Loge is the director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at GWU and has worked on numerous campaigns before stepping into a teaching role.
Federal candidates had to submit their latest fund-raising numbers to the Federal Election Commission on Monday. The second quarter includes all the money raised and spent the beginning of April.
New filings also show that incumbent U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D., Ohio) has substantially more on hand than his opponent, Cleveland businessman Bernie Moreno.
Mr. Brown’s campaign, Friends of Sherrod Brown, announced a $12.8 million second-quarter haul ahead of the deadline, bringing his total raised to about $46 million. The campaign said it has also received donations from all of Ohio’s 88 counties and 92 percent of the individual contributions were $100 or less during the second-quarter.
“Sherrod has unprecedented grassroots support backing him because he has a proven track record fighting for Ohioans …,” Rachel Petri, the campaign manager, wrote in a statement about the effort. “Sherrod and Connie are grateful to every supporter behind our campaign that is making sure Sherrod can continue fighting for Ohioans and the Dignity of Work.”
Mr. Brown’s campaign is ending quarter two with $10.7 million on hand, having spent about $38.7 million overall.
Mr. Moreno has two committees raising money for his campaign, which have raised a combined $6.8 million in the second quarter, bringing his total raised to $15.8 million. The campaign said it has also received donations from all of Ohio’s counties.
"We are grateful for the support of Ohioans in all 88 counties who are ready to fire Sherrod Brown and send an outsider to the Senate,” Bryan Gray, Mr. Moreno’s campaign manager, wrote in a statement. “Bernie will not be outworked and will continue to share his clear message of a growing economy, secure borders, and American energy dominance across our state, while Sherrod Brown runs away from his hideous record of voting with Joe Biden nearly 100 percent of the time."
Mr. Moreno’s campaign has disbursed about $11.2 million overall. He is ending quarter two with a little less than $4.5 million cash on hand but has $4.5 million in debts and loans owed by the committee.
“Campaigns often do that. This isn’t a one off,” Mr. Loge said. “Especially if you’re self-funding, you loan the campaign money, and then if you get elected, it’s relatively easy to pay those debts off … if you lose, it can be super hard to pay off because now there’s no reason to give you money.”
Mr. Moreno has loaned his own campaign $1.5 million. His campaign did not respond to a request for comment on the loans.
“I think for Brown, he’s in a good place, and partly because he’s consistently been raising lots of money and consistently ahead in the polls,” Mr. Loge said. “For Moreno, he’s always been battling from behind, never quite closing the fund-raising gap.”
The next quarterly filing date is Oct. 15.
First Published July 16, 2024, 9:59 p.m.
