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The report details fundraising and campaign expenses for the first two weeks of January and February. Here are his five big money stories you may have missed.
Adam Schiff is spending a ton of money for the Senate.
Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff’s campaign to become California’s next U.S. senator is spending nearly as much on television ads as the president.
His campaign has brought in more than $22.3 million in about six weeks across all forms of advertising, including television, digital and print. Most of that, $14.8 million, was spent on “video production services,” likely part of his massive TV advertising budget, including buying the ads themselves. Overall, advertising costs account for about 85% of his total spending of $24.8 million, which is a huge amount overall.
Schiff spent $21 million in January alone, including about $19.1 million in advertising. By comparison, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump’s campaigns spent much less. Combined He appeared in television ads last month, according to campaign finance reports filed earlier this week. The two leading presidential candidates spent $6.6 million on advertising, which does not include digital spending through other affiliates.
Mr. Schiff’s daunting expenses are due in part to how expensive it is to run a statewide campaign in California. And his dramatic fundraising advantage over his primary opponent helps explain why he is the front-runner in the race so far.
One area where Schiff’s campaign falls short of the president’s campaign is staffing. He paid his staff of just under 40 $220,000 in salaries, he reported. That’s a high number for a primary, but it falls short of the 110 people Biden had on his payroll nationwide in January.
A billionaire proxy war is brewing in Alabama.
On Super Tuesday, Alabama will hold an unusual primary election for Congress, pitting Republicans Jerry Carl and Barry Moore against each other in the state’s 1st Congressional District.
The two sides are at odds after a federal court overhauled Alabama’s congressional districts to give black residents more voting rights. The change eliminates Moore’s original 2nd District, making way for a statewide majority-black district and all but guaranteeing a Democrat will be elected in November. Ta.
So Moore and Karl will be competing for the bright red seat. The two, and their allies, have released attack ads back and forth accusing each other of being anti-Trump RINOs.
And the race has become a quiet proxy war between prominent Republican megadonors.
A group called Conservatives for American Excellence ran an ad attacking Moore for “blocking President Trump’s border wall.” This week’s filings revealed that the group received large sums of money from hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin and investment banker Warren Stevens.
And they’re not the only Republican donors getting into this race. The School Freedom Fund, which is affiliated with the Club for Growth, has recently run ads supporting Moore. Businessman Jeff Yass, shipping magnate Richard Uihlein and Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus gave millions of dollars to the School Freedom Fund last year.
Is Sheila Jackson Lee in trouble?
A primary challenge to a 15-term lawmaker is usually not considered a serious threat.
But former Houston City Councilwoman Amanda Edwards could be an exception, as she will be running against longtime Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in Texas’ 18th Congressional District.
Mr. Edwards, who previously interned under Jackson Lee, slightly outperformed his former boss in the latest reporting period, earning $179,000 compared to his current salary of $164,000. However, the more notable difference lies in the size of campaign funds. Edwards has $669,000 at his disposal, nearly three times as much as Jackson Lee ($225,000).
This cash advantage could be beneficial, especially if both candidates receive more than 50% of the vote and end up in a runoff. A recent poll from the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs found Jackson Lee with a slight lead over Edwards, 43% to 38%.
Mr. Edwards has work to do in terms of establishing himself with voters. During his election campaign, Edwards has advocated for “change” in the administration.
However, even though Jackson Lee is well-known, his position is unstable after suffering a landslide defeat in last year’s Houston mayoral election. She announced she would run for re-election shortly after her loss in December, and fell far behind in her fundraising. Edwards still outperformed Jackson Lee in the fourth quarter of 2023 by $272,000 to $23,000.
Several major California challengers spent more money than they raised
A handful of battleground districts in California could decide control of the U.S. House of Representatives. But many of the challengers in these key races don’t necessarily have the funds for a general election, according to Thursday’s report.
In the state’s 9th Congressional District, Republican Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln is likely to advance to the general election and face Democratic Representative Josh Harder, the NRCC’s biggest target this term. But Mr. Lincoln spent $115,000 in the first six weeks of this year and raised just $44,000. As of Feb. 14, Mr. Harder had nearly $2.8 million in the bank, compared to $224,000.
In the 49th District, where the NRCC is targeting Democratic Rep. Mike Levin, Republican candidates Margarita Wilkinson and Matt Gunderson spent about $1 million and $750,000, respectively, in a month and a half in 2024. Donations were relatively small. Both candidates have financed most of their campaigns with their own funds. If either party advances to the general election and takes on Mr. Levine, they may need to spend even more money. Two other Republicans, Marine Corps veteran Kate Monroe and auto executive Cheryl Adams, also have a chance of making it through the top two primaries, but each will spend $30,000 on the campaign trail. After raising just over $6,000, they will need to significantly increase their fundraising efforts. 6 week period.
Meanwhile, the tough Democratic primary to replace U.S. Rep. Katie Porter in the 27th District is financially exhausted. Dave Min and Joanna Weiss both spent hundreds of thousands of dollars more than they raised in the first six weeks of this year, leaving Min with only $224,000 in the bank and Weiss with $61,000 left in the bank. The total amount was $3,000.
Republican Scott Baugh, who is likely to be the top two primary candidate in the district, raised just $78,000 in that period. But he also spent just over $95,000, leaving his campaign with $1.7 million in the bank. This would give either Min or Weiss a significant financial advantage at the start of the general election cycle, with them having to play catch-up.
Several major super PACs are gearing up.
This week’s deadline gave us a closer look at three super PACs poised to spend big this year.
First, FairShake, which is funded by the crypto industry, revealed that it has amassed a huge amount of money (in non-crypto dollars, in US dollars). The group made dramatic headlines last year when it revealed it had raised nearly $86 million. This week’s filing revealed that the group received $6 million in January, led by a nearly $5 million donation from the Winklevoss twins of Facebook (and “The Social Network”) fame. Ta.
The group entered February with a whopping $72.9 million in cash and quickly gained traction with campaigns across the country. It has already begun to increase its power, running ads attacking Mr. Porter, one of Mr. Schiff’s opponents in the California Senate race. And the organization is part of a triumvirate of pro-crypto groups looking to spend big this year, with enough money to play a major role in any election it wants.
And two pro-Israel organizations are also promising to play a big role in this year’s elections, especially in the Democratic primaries. They are DMFI PAC, run by the Democratic Party of Israel Majority, and United Democracy Project, the super PAC arm of the American Israeli People. AIPAC Administrative Committee.
DMFI PAC has recently announced a series of endorsements in open primaries, and the organization could target some members of the Squad, a group of liberal lawmakers.
DMFI received a $1 million donation from Deborah Simon, the scion of a shopping mall empire and a prominent Democratic donor, and holds about $3 million, according to a filing earlier this week.
UDP has even more money in the bank, reporting nearly $42 million ready for deployment as of the end of January.
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