While the Sixth District's sky-high fundraising numbers are getting plenty of attention, fundraising totals in the other seven Minnesota congressional districts provide a good window into where those races are at.
Reports are due to the Federal Election Commission for all congressional candidates by midnight tonight (about half have filed already). Here's a rundown of who has raised what from July 22 to Sept. 30 and what they have left for the final weeks of the campaign:
First District: Republican challenger Randy Demmer raised $183,000 this past quarter, putting him just north of $600,000 total. He has $232,000 left in the bank. Rep. Tim Walz had not filed yet, but as of July he had raised $1.4 million with $832,000 to spare.
Second/Third: No reports filed.
Fourth: Rep. Betty McCollum raised $136,000 for the quarter and $757,000 in all, with $188,000 cash in hand. Nothing spectacular there, but still outpacing her Republican challenger Teresa Collett, who raised $78,000 last quarter for a total of $136,000, with just $33,000 left in the bank.
Fifth: Rep. Keith Ellison pulled in $233,000 since July, pushing him to $1.2 million for the cycle. He has $252,000 in the bank. His challenger Republican Joel Demos recently collected enough money to get an ad on TV, but as of Sept. 30 he had raised $44,000 for the quarter and $67,000 overall, with $21,000 remaining.
Sixth: Nothing officially filed yet, but Rep. Michele Bachmann announced a record $5.4 million quarterly haul, while Democratic challenger Tarryl Clark said she's raised $1.8 million. Here are stories on Bachmann's and Clark's numbers.
Seventh: Rep. Collin Peterson raised $218,000 this quarter putting him over $1 million overall, while his opponent Lee Byberg brought in $151,000 for $260,000 total. The real difference: Peterson has $814,000 in the bank to Byberg's paltry $37,000.
