Campaign money: Solid quarter for Cortez Masto, but Heck has more cash

By Megan Messerly

Saturday, July 16, 2016 | 2 a.m.

All eyes will be on the presidential election for the next two weeks as Republicans and Democrats gather for their national conventions in Cleveland and Philadelphia.

But here at home many congressional candidates will continue to campaign and fundraise with their sights squarely set on the November election.

The latest round of fundraising reports, which were due Friday, reveal how candidates are shaping up after the primary election — whose reserves were relatively depleted after competitive primary fights, and who has started to build a significant war chest looking ahead over the next several months.

Here’s a roundup of how much the congressional candidates raised along with a snapshot of each race:

U.S. Senate

The battle for Harry Reid’s U.S. Senate seat won’t come cheap.

Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto, former state attorney general, raised almost $3 million last quarter and ended the quarter with about $3.4 million in the bank. “We’re excited that our campaign will have the resources we need to make clear to Nevadans the choice in this election,” said Cortez Masto’s spokesman Zach Hudson.

Republican Rep. Joe Heck raised less, $1.8 million, but ended the quarter with more in the bank than Cortez Masto, $4.8 million. “Dr. Heck has the real world experience as a physician, veteran, small-business owner and brigadier general in the Army Reserve to be a strong and independent voice for Nevada in the U.S. Senate,” said Heck’s spokesman Brian Baluta.

Neither of those sets of numbers take into account the massive amounts of money that outside groups have already spent or planned to spend in this U.S. Senate race ahead of the general election.

4th Congressional District

The fight between Republican Rep. Cresent Hardy, the incumbent, and Democratic candidate Ruben Kihuen, a state senator, for this congressional seat is expected to be one of the most intense of the election cycle. Kihuen outraised Hardy in the second quarter, bringing in $465,000, while Hardy reported raising $174,000.

Kihuen’s campaign noted that 80 percent of his contributions during the second quarter were $100 or less.

“The strong grassroots support for Ruben’s campaign helped carry him to a decisive primary win, and it has put us in a strong position to take back this seat for Nevadans in November,” said Dave Chase, Kihuen’s campaign manager.

However, Kihuen had to spend most of his war chest on a fierce primary election against former Assemblywoman Lucy Flores and philanthropist Susie Lee, which left him with $230,000 on hand. By contrast, Hardy, who didn’t have any serious primary threat, ended the quarter with $758,000 in the bank.

“We are confident that the numbers released today put us in the strongest position moving forward to the fall,” said Hardy’s campaign manager Ross Hemminger.

The seat is considered one of Democrats’ more likely pickup opportunities this cycle. Roll Call has labeled the seat “tilt Democrat” and listed Hardy as the second most vulnerable incumbent this cycle.

The district includes North Las Vegas, rural Clark County, part of Lyon County, and all of Esmeralda, Lincoln, Mineral, Nye, and White Pine counties. Democrats have a moderate voter registration advantage in the district of about 34,000 voters, as of June.

3rd Congressional District

Democrat Jacky Rosen and Republican Danny Tarkanian have never held office before. But the political newcomers are in one of the tightest races to replace Heck in the House.

Rosen, a Henderson synagogue leader, reported raising more than $374,000 in the second quarter of the year and ended it with $232,000 on hand. Her campaign noted that 72 percent of the donations were $100 or less.

“Jacky’s campaign to represent Southern Nevada in Congress is resonating, and it’s clear she will have the resources to win this seat in November,” said Rosen’s campaign manager David Furr.

Tarkanian, who faced a bitter primary against state Senate Majority Leader Michael Roberson, reported having about $191,000 on hand at the end of the quarter with about $161,000 in debts. He raised $162,000 last quarter.

"After winning a very costly and competitive primary, we are pleased that our fundraising for the general election is off to a strong start,” said Jamie Fisfis, Tarkanian’s campaign consultant.

The 3rd Congressional District wraps around the valley from Summerlin to Henderson and includes the southern tip of the state. Voter registration in the district is almost even, with Democrats outnumbering Republicans by about 5,000 as of June.

1st and 2nd Congressional Districts

Democratic Rep. Dina Titus raised $194,000 last quarter toward her re-election bid and finished the quarter with $431,000 in the bank.

Titus’ Republican challenger, Mary Perry, reported raising about $700 in the same time period and has about $170 in the bank.

The 1st Congressional District has a wide Democratic voter registration advantage — Democrats outnumbered Republicans by about 72,000 as of June. The district is situated in the heart of the Las Vegas Valley.

In the 2nd Congressional District, Republican Rep. Mark Amodei reported raising about $137,000 in the second quarter of the year for his re-election bid. He ended the quarter with about $281,000 in the bank.

His Democratic opponent, Chip Evans, raised $31,000 over that same period and had $33,000 on hand at the end of the quarter.

The district, situated in the northern portion of the state, has a significant 42,000-person Republican voter registration advantage, as of June.