Tuesday, April 21, 2020 | 10:48 a.m.
Nevada's three Democrats and one Republican who are seeking re-election to their U.S. House seats this year are building fundraising cushions they'll use to try to defeat challengers in the months ahead.
The state's four incumbent members of Congress all started April with more than twice the campaign cash of their best-funded challengers, according to the latest reports filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Despite the hefty campaign donations lawmakers brought in from January through March, some who represent swing districts may still face strong challenges in November.
Here's a look at the fundraising numbers from the first quarter of 2020:
___
Nevada’s 1st District
Democratic Rep. Dina Titus, who has represented central Las Vegas and the casino-lined Strip since 2012, is heavily favored to win her seat again in November. She reported raising $48,000 over the past few months and had $330,000 on hand in her campaign account.
Two fellow Democrats have filed to run against her in the primary and four Republicans are running, but only one other candidate reported raising money in the first three months of the year. Republican Citlaly Larios-Elias reported raising $3,000 and had $1,700 at the end of March.
___
Nevada’s 2nd District
Republican Rep. Mark Amodei, who has represented Reno and northern Nevada since 2011, brought in about $90,000 in campaign contributions in the first three months of 2020 and entered the spring with about $293,000 in his account.
The GOP holds a voter registration advantage in Amodei's district, but a number of Democrats are vying for the seat. Retired mountaineer and actress Patricia Ackerman reported about $28,000 in contributions and loaned her campaign $12,700. She closed out March with $23,000 to spend. Former journalist Ed Cohen raised about $21,000, loaned his campaign about $32,000 and started April with $32,000 on hand. Former Obama administration official Clint Koble raised about $18,000 and loaned his campaign $7,700. He started April with about $4,200 on hand. Retired business owner Rick Shepherd, meanwhile, reported nearly $2,700 in contributions and $11,650 to spend going forward.
___
Nevada’s 3rd District
Freshman Rep. Susie Lee raised about $512,000 and finished the quarter with $1.9 million for her race in a southern Nevada district, which is expected to be the closest general election battle in the state this year. Republicans running for the seat covering southwest Las Vegas, Henderson, Boulder City and Laughlin have not matched Lee’s fundraising. Republican and former professional wrestler Dan Rodimer raised $164,000 and ended March with $323,000 on hand. Former GOP state treasurer Dan Schwartz took in $43,000 in contributions and loaned his campaign $100,000. He started April with about $424,000. Actress and conservative activist Mindy Robinson only brought in about $3,500 and ended the quarter almost at the same place, having spent less than $150.
___
Nevada’s 4th District
Incumbent Rep. Steven Horsford represents the district covering areas north of Las Vegas and large swaths of rural counties. Horsford added $309,000 to his campaign account in recent months and started the second quarter of the year with about $1.2 million to spend. His only Democratic challenger to report fundraising was Gabrielle d’Ayr, who reported having only $600 that she gave to her own campaign.
On the Republican side, former state lawmaker Jim Marchant led the pack of hopefuls in his party, raising $100,000 and starting April with $231,000. Business owner and former Miss Nevada Lisa Song Sutton raised about $79,000 and had about $198,000 on hand. Business owner Sam Peters raised about $48,000, loaned his campaign $15,000 and reported $60,000 in his account at the end of March. Randi Reed raised about $54,000 and had about $27,000 on hand, while Charles Navarro took in $5,800 and had about $25,000 on hand.
Other GOP challengers reported raising much smaller amounts or did not report any fundraising.
