In money race, the three main Congressional candidates all lead a category
Bryan Townsend has raised $531,644.82 for his Democratic Congressional primary campaign so far, as of the quarterly finance reporting period ending June 30. That tops Sean Barney’s $418,205.04 and Lisa Blunt Rochester’s $353,246.35. Meanwhile in the 2nd Quarter (from April 1 to June 30), Barney outraised Townsend and Rochester $210,307.29 to $175,971.44 and $138,353.98, respectively. Finally, in terms of cash on hand, Lisa Blunt Rochester leads the pack, with $320,257.32 to Barney’s $278,623.81 and Townsend’s $247,633.74. However, Lisa’s lead in Cash on Hand is because she leads in another category: the candidate who has lent the most money to her own campaign. She has donated $178,900 of her own money to her campaign. So really, her actual Cash on Hand minus her loans is $141,357.32.
Here is something interesting from Open Secrets as of the last reporting period (ending March 31): 74% of Barney’s contributions was from donors out of state.
According to Open Secrets, “Candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives typically get the majority of their campaign dollars from donors within their home state.”
I will be curious to see if this trend continued in Barney’s 2Q fundraising.
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Only number that matters is cash on hand.
That would be true if the $$’s already spent were spent in an equally efficient manner and the three were in a virtual tie. Not sure that’s the case.
I think that graph is pretty clearly saying Bryan Townsend is the frontrunner.
3/4 of Barney money is outside Delaware??? The News Journal should seriously dive into that issue. Who is funding that campaign?? and why??
It’s the Vote Vets group. Pretty clear that it’s pretty much his only financial support.
Conventional wisdom is that Townsend is ahead, and it’s probably right. But field gains don’t matter as much when you get out communicated. Fair or unfair in addition you have to account for outside groups spending as well, Lisa and Sean have groups that will spend on their behalf, Bryan doesn’t.
You don’t get out-communicated when volunteers have been knocking on doors since the beginning of the year on behalf of your campaign. And volunteers don’t cost money either. Well, except for water, donuts and the occasional pizza.
All three have money for mailings, but, as near as I can tell, only one campaign has been consistently ID’ing voters and enlisting supporters for several months.
And Lisa only has a decent amount of money if she forgives her loan. Most candidates don’t.
Money doesn’t vote. It can’t walk in to a polling place and even if it did, it doesn’t have a license…
This is a reminder that only people vote. All the money in the world does one no good, if people already like someone else…
It appears the only reasons reporters particularly newpaper ones, make such a big deal over money raised, is because they don’t have any themselves………
I like Townsend, but to be fair the reason that he has more in-state dollars is because he’s a state senator. He’s a political insider. The only way you beat a political insider in Delaware in a statewide race is with money from out of state. I don’t think its fair to ping people for getting dollars from national groups. Not like you can depend on any of the big money contributors locally to take a stand against a sitting state senator.
Also, I think Townsend is going to lose if vote vets puts Barney on TV; or if the congressional black caucus or Emily’s list puts Lisa on TV. With 200k in the bank I doubt any candidate will have enough for a worthwhile TV package on their own. I dont think Townsend has any third party group that could put him on TV. Something to watch for.
I always thought the CW was that TV adverts are wasted in Delaware. The Philly media market reaches mostly PA voters and the Salisbury market reaches mostly MD ones.
I disagree with Townsend being an “insider.” Someone who knocks off a sitting prez pro tempore is no insider.
What he is is a known quantity to members of the GA when compared to Barney – who’s a career staffer and has no track record of his own except losing a campaign that was his to win – and Rochester – whose last public-sector job was given to her by RAM and who has been out of the country and state for nearly 10 years. If you can’t see why Townsend looks like the better option to them, you need glasses. That doesn’t mean he’s an “insider” like Carper & Carney, or that he’ll turn against us once he gets to DC.
I LOVE the political insider meme. Do you realize that practically every political insider, including BOTH Carney and Markell, personally campaigned against him when he ran against the ethically-bankrupt Tony DeLuca? I mean, out there and knocking doors with him. At least when DeLuca showed up. They’re not in Townsend’s corner now. Nor, of course, is Carper, who has said that his ‘children’ are running against Townsend in this race.
Townsend, both in that race and this one, cultivated, and continues to cultivate, the small donor, many of whom have volunteered for him. Which is why his fundraising is sustainable. Not a whole bunch of max contributors, but people who are willing to ante up over and over again.
Plus, his campaign is grass-roots-oriented, with volunteers knocking on doors every single day. That’s why he spent money on three field offices instead of a whole bunch of direct mail. I think it’s a winning strategy.
You all crack me up. Your passion is nice to see, but you have to pull back and try to be objective. Townsend is still a state senator if he loses, which means people with state interests need him to be on their side. So yes, he has a built in advantage for in state money. 200 grand for a statewide candidate isn’t much money to communicate. TV works, just look at Markell Carney, Markell won because of TV. Grassroots are great, but if someone is communicating everywhere and you’re only communicating one door at a time, the guy with the bullhorn will win — sorry.
I should also have pointed out that Rochester was named to top jobs by both Carper and Minner (labor secretary under Carper, personnel director under Minner).
And Barney was hired to work for both Carper in the Senate and Markell in the Governor’s office.
But yah, Townsend’s the insider.
You’re missing the point. Bane wasn’t saying Townsend was the establishment’s pick. He was saying people with in state interests feel compelled to stay on Townsend’s good side – which is true – win or lose they have to deal with him.
Seriously, that’s just not true. Townsend’s getting most of his money from small contributors, not ‘in-state interests’. Nobody feels that they have to ‘stay on his good side’. He’s not Tony DeLuca. That’s just an uninformed argument.
If people in the General Assembly support him, it’s because they like him and get along with him. Which is why he’s been able to pass a lot of good progressive legislation. Since he’d be a legislator as a congressperson, I consider that a good thing.
Oh, and Markell did NOT win b/c of TV. He won b/c he did a better job of Voter ID and GOTV. That was a rare election that likely was won/lost based on Election Day performance. I remember working at a very efficient phone bank while Carney had his union guys waving signs. Guess which tactic worked better in a razor-thin race?
OK.
You want to live in la-la land and that’s your choice.
Also hate to burst your bubble… but Barney actually leads the way in unitemized contributions according to the FEC reports. That said Townsend is at 15% and Barney 16% hardly campaigns fueled by small dollar donations.
But those are facts. 15% unitemized? But I thought it was a campaign run on small dollar donations? Regardless of how he got to the state senate, he is there now. Holding that post gives you a huge fundraising advantage.
Furthermore, are you making the argument that as a State Senator he is so well loved in Dover by his legislative associates that it allows him to pass a lot of bills, but at the same time he isn’t a political insider? You must really be in love. Love and hate are the only things that can make a person that irrational.
Holding that post gives you a huge fundraising advantage.
Tell that to Brian Short. Yes, I know Short was not a State Senator, but he started out as the candidate with the longest tenure in state government and one with some connection to the business community. Short also started as the establishment’s assumptive favorite candidate, yet Townsend overcame that advantage by just working his butt off.
The amount of money a candidate has is important, but more important is what independent money will be spent and how all that money is used. While there are many who keep up to date on politics and campaigns, the average likely Primary voter is still not aware of the existence of a September 13th election, outside of people in Wilmington who are aware of a mayoral race. I continue to be surprised at the number of people who are not aware of any race other than that for president. Just yesterday I brought up the election with someone I believed was tuned in to these things and I mentioned that there was a congressional primary. That person did not know that John Carney was running for governor and that there were people seeking his soon to be open House seat. Of course they were also clueless about a primary for Lt Governor.
That said, as I found out 4 years ago, while candidates can phone and mail to “likely” Democratic voters, they will miss the thousands who are not reach and will go to the polls oblivious. Many of those who are phoned will hang up. The bulk of the mailings will receive a 6 second review and be quickly forgotten.
That is why TV can be effective in this type of race. The candidate for Congress who has the funds, or has an independent committee expend the funds, to go up on Philadelphia TV will reach 25,000-30,000 likely Democratic Primary voters. Those voters who see multiple ads touting a candidate and who otherwise know nothing about them, are very likely to form an impression and cast the vote accordingly. Likewise, advertising on the 2 Salisbury and 1Rehoboth station will reach upwards of 8,000 likely Democratic voters in Sussex and lower Kent.
Cassandra Short was going to give up his seat to run for Congress… so if he lost people with state interests had nothing to worry about. Different situation with Townsend.
I think name recognition might not benefit anyone this year.
so if he lost people with state interests had nothing to worry about.
The problem with this, of course, is that it assumes the winner would have no influence in the state once he went to Congress AND that the “state interests” wouldn’t have need of a Federal Congressman to push their interests.
Correct Cassandra. That’s mostly how Delaware works. Most local entities rarely require a congressman to push for causes in DC. State matters effect them much more than the national ones. Furthermore, if they did have an issue federally, they would go to the US Senators before they went to the freshman US Congressman.
Also, I’m sure the congressperson may have impact on some state affairs after they get elected, but typically in Delaware you never see members of the federal group weigh in on state issues. Essentially, a win will pull that person out of any issue within state government that does not have some federal connection.
Short would not be a threat to anyone immediately regardless of tge outcome. Nor would he have heald a grudge. Townsend on the other hand…. I’ve heard stories.
but typically in Delaware you never see members of the federal group weigh in on state issues.
Certainly not overtly. But one of the central critiques of the Delaware Way is that once you are a “made man” , the other “made men” open their doors and work on your issues. Whether it is directly or indirectly, pushing one button often results in a cascade of buttons being pushed.
Ehhhh, maybe. Yet and still, a returning member of tge GA is way more of a threat to local special interests than a freshman US Congressman or someone like short who once he lost would have been out of elected life.
Townsend is the safe gamble, not because of his ability to win (which I think he has a good chance, not as good as others think, but a good shot nontheless), but because win or lose, he will still be in the game.
That still isn’t the point. Yes anyone who became congressperson is someone you want on your side. My point was if someone is guaranteed to be in a position of power win or lose (only person in the race that applies to is Townsend) it’s more urgent to give to them.
^^^It’s as though this person doesn’t even live in Delaware.
Barney contributor? 🙂
Agree with Bane and Hmm. Also, if this is such a college-kid, pizza fueled, people power campaign – what the hell is he spending all of that money on?
Pizza is pretty expensive nowadays, unless you have a Clipper Coupon.
For advertising for Delaware political candidates, I’m curious about the demographics breakdown for watching regular television versus digital since it’s also possible to reach voters via video advertising on other digital channels, including TV on the go types of apps. It’s not just limited to broadcast like it was just a few years ago.
@JTF How about rent for four offices? A field/fundraising staff and all the overhead that comes with voter outreach 7 days a week? Isn’t the better question what the other candidates are spending their money on, considering they don’t seem to be campaigning at all, save for the odd parade appearance?