Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., listens to a question from a reporter following a tour of the TemperPack Technologies facility Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022.
Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022 | 2 a.m.
U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., is among top congressional fundraisers, with her reelection campaign bringing in $3.4 million from Oct. 1 toDec. 31 to increase her total raised to $18.3 million.
That total ranks 10th of all candidates vying for a spot in Congress, according to the Federal Election Commission.
The fourth-quarter filing was reported this week, showing Cortez Masto — after expenses — had $10.5 million cash on hand as of Monday.
Republican Adam Laxalt, one of Cortez Masto’s potential general election challengers, raised $1,337,688 in the fourth quarter to bring his total funds raised to $2.7 million, according to the filings. Sam Brown, another Republican Senate hopeful, reported $1,055,248 during the fourth quarter and $2,056,774 since the start of the election cycle.
Laxalt enters February with $1.7 million cash on hand, and Brown sits at $732,000 as the two head toward the June primary and the chance to meet Cortez Masto in the November general election.
The Cortez Masto war chest will come in handy as she’s expected to be in one of the more closely contested Senate races in the nation. Political analysts in November recategorized the once lean-Democrat race to a toss-up.
“Sen. Cortez Masto is working hard to boost Nevada’s economy, creating thousands of new jobs through the bipartisan infrastructure law and pushing to lower costs for Nevada families,” said Sigalle Reshef, Cortez Masto’s campaign press secretary. “Meanwhile, our campaign is making sure the senator has the resources she needs to win in November.”
John Burke, communications director for Laxalt, said Laxalt’s fundraising effort rivals that of any Senate challenger in the country.
“With the support of our grassroots movement made up of working Nevada families who are ready for change, our campaign is ready to take on Cortez Masto’s machine and restore conservative leadership for our state,” he said.
Brown’s campaign had a similar response, saying “Sam Brown is raising millions from grassroots donors looking for an alternative to career politicians of both parties. He is well-positioned and well-funded for the primary campaign ahead.”
In races involving Nevada’s seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, 1st Congressional District incumbent Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., raised $271,909 between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, bringing her total raised during the election cycle to $674,113. In the fourth quarter, her campaign spent $39,532 and had $838,193 on hand.
Titus’ primary challenger Amy Vilela raised $95,565 in the fourth quarter, bringing her total raised to $280,348. Vilela has spent $240,297 and has $35,695 cash on hand.
On the Republican side of 1st Congressional District hopefuls, Mark Robertson, an Army veteran and businessman, raised $55,236 during the fourth quarter and had $172,445 on hand. Carolina Serrano, a former Trump campaign employee who also is running as a Republican for the seat, raised $59,567 in the fourth quarter and had $57,403 on hand.
In the 3rd Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Susie Lee raised $623,237 during the fourth quarter and had $1,789,061 on hand.
A crowded field of Republicans is looking to oust Lee, including April Becker, John Kovacs, Noah Malgeri and Clark Bossert.
Among those Republican candidates, Becker, a Las Vegas attorney, has raised the most — $200,603 during the fourth quarter, bringing her total raised to $845,950. She has spent a total of $460,405 since the start of the election cycle and had $38,0858 on hand.
In the 4th Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford raised $462,101 between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, bringing his total raised during the election cycle to $1,861,431. He has spent a total of $805,248 and had $1,678,908 on hand.
A few Republicans are looking to defeat Horsford, including Sam Peters and Annie Black. Peters raised $134,361 during the fourth quarter and has raised $502,002 since the start of the election cycle. After spending $275,715, Peters had $229,450 on hand.
Republican Rep. Mark Amodei, who represents the 2nd Congressional District in Northern Nevada, raised $97,477 between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, bringing his total raised during the election cycle to $415,473. His campaign has spent $414,973. His cash on hand was $400,519. According to the Federal Election Commission, Amodei does not appear to have competition. None of those who had expressed interest in opposing Amodei — Democrats Aaron Michael Sims and Timothy Hanifan, and Republican Jesse Douglas Hurley — had filed the required paperwork with the FEC.
