Election 2019: Democrats winning fundraising battle as election nears

Heading into November’s election, a majority of Democratic candidates for Virginia’s General Assembly continue to outraise their Republican opponents in Chesterfield, some by two and three times as much.

On Sept. 15, the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project published candidate fundraising figures for July and August, showing that Democratic enthusiasm has yet to wane three years after the election of Republican President Donald Trump. In a county where many of its districts recently became bluer through a redrawn legislative map, Democrats are hoping that gains made in Chesterfield will help them flip both houses of the General Assembly.

In the race for Virginia’s 10th state Senate District, Democrat Ghazala Hashmi outraised Sen. Glen Sturtevant: $269,710 to his $138,127. In Virginia’s 27th House District, Democrat Larry Barnett raised more than three times what Republican Del. Roxann Robinson did in the two-month span: $158,989 to her $44,677.

Republican Speaker Kirk Cox, running for reelection in Virginia’s 66th House District, narrowly outperformed Democratic challenger Sheila Bynum-Coleman, raising $390,453 to her $330,347. “These are unusually strong numbers for challengers,” says Stephen Farnsworth, a professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington. “Challengers usually find it difficult to compete with incumbents when it comes to raising money, but [in] the Barnett/Robinson and the Cox/Bynum-Coleman races, you see that those challengers are doing what few challengers do: raise money in amounts comparable to incumbents.”

Generally, Farnsworth says both parties are putting a lot of money into Chesterfield races, calling it “the equivalent of a financial arms race.”

Bob Holsworth, a longtime political analyst in Richmond, says these figures show how important these races are for both parties.

“The Democrats have done, I thought, particularly in these House races, an excellent job in funding the challengers,” Holsworth says. “In many instances, while they have raised more money recently, the incumbent has as much – if not more – cash on hand, which is important. But it shows that the Democrats are really putting an effort into [these races].”




https://www.chesterfieldobserver.com/articles/democrats-winning-fundraising-battle-as-election-nears/