Gabrielle Giffords husband is taking his turn back on earth….
Mark Kelly has more money in his Senate election war chest than Joe Biden does running for president.
The former astronaut, gun control activist and husband of Gabrielle Giffords has established a veritable cash gusher in Arizona, raising nearly $14 million this year, including $5.6 million in the last three months alone. Combined with his compelling biography, Kelly, a Democrat running for elected office for the first time, has laid the groundwork for a serious bid to unseat GOP Sen. Martha McSally in a critical battleground for Senate control.
McSally, who was appointed to the Senate after losing the race for the state’s other seat in 2018, has posted impressive fundraising in the off year, too, outraising all but two Republican senators in the most recent fundraising period. But Kelly has nonetheless stretched his advantage, with $9.5 million in the bank as of Sept. 30, compared with $5.6 million for McSally.
“I think those numbers speak for themselves. Good grief,” said Jim Pederson, a former state Democratic Party chair who ran for Senate in 2006.
“The guy is a very personable, sharp guy. And he’s made a lot of friends nationwide, and I think he’s tapped into that network,” Pederson said, adding that Arizonans were “wrapped up into his enthusiasm.”
Republicans have taken notice as well.
“It’s not necessarily that Sen. McSally is doing poorly. It is that Mark Kelly is doing spectacularly,” said Paul Bentz, a Republican strategist in Arizona. “He’s doing above and beyond, I think, what anybody would have anticipated when it comes to fundraising….
image..Vox.Com
Those are incredible fundraising numbers for a relatively unpopulated state. Go Kelly!
Could the Dem’s actually hold the House and get the WH AND the Senate???????
I just sent James an article on how several of the Democratic challengers are out raising their opponents.
We have an organized group of Democrats here in California who will be traveling to swing states next year. Our group in Northern California numbers in the thousands and they help with fundraising. Just attended a small event for Kelly.
These are great numbers this early.