Iowa Senate fundraising: Franken raises more this period, Grassley has more in the bank
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Democrat Mike Franken substantially outraised Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley in the most recent fundraising period, new financial filings show, but Grassley continues to hold far more cash on hand.
The new numbers are the first to come since Franken locked up the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate last month, launching a general election campaign that could be Grassley's most competitive since 1980.
A new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll released Saturday shows Grassley currently leads Franken by 8 percentage points — 47% to 39%. Another 7% of likely voters say they would vote for someone else, 2% say they would not vote and 5% say they are not sure.
"It's a solid lead," said pollster J. Ann Selzer, president of Selzer & Co. But it's not the margin Iowans are used to seeing with Grassley, who won his last election by 24 percentage points.
More: Chuck Grassley holds 8-point lead over Mike Franken in US Senate race, Iowa Poll finds
Grassley raised about $609,000 between May 19 and June 30 — far short of the $1.7 million Franken recorded.
Still, Grassley has raised more during the full election cycle: about $6.1 million compared to Franken's $4.6 million. And he has far more in the bank: about $4 million compared to Franken's $1.1 million.
Grassley's campaign spokesperson, Michaela Sundermann, said in a statement that Franken's numbers show national Democrats are uninterested in investing in a race they don't view as competitive.
Democrat Theresa Greenfield had raised more than $10 million by this point in 2020 in her race against Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst. That race was viewed as a "toss up" by national elections forecasters. Those same forecasters say Iowa's current U.S. Senate race solidly favors Grassley.
"Iowa Democrats must be disappointed that their 'star' recruit is in such a weak financial position," Sundermann said.
The Franken campaign bragged that the fundraising numbers paired with the poll results show a "momentum shift."
"Iowans are tired of hyperpartisanship and blame-shifting from entrenched Washington career politicians," the campaign wrote in a statement. "Simply put: Senator Chuck Grassley isn’t working for Iowa, and that’s why this race is so close and competitive."
Here's a look at fundraising totals for all of Iowa's federal races. The period covers May 19 through June 30 and is shorter than a normal quarterly report because campaigns were required to make a disclosure just before Iowa's June primary elections.
U.S. Senate
Incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley
Total receipts this period: $609,599
Total receipts this election cycle: $6,193,298
Total spent this period: $1,119,639
Total spent this election cycle: $4,693,340
Cash on hand: $4,000,034
Democrat Mike Franken
Total receipts this period: $1,752,066
Total receipts this election cycle: $4,604,733
Total spent this period: $903,096
Total spent this election cycle: $3,499,145
Cash on hand: $1,101,789
1st Congressional District
Incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks
Total receipts this period: $527,860
Total receipts this election cycle: $2,737,984
Total spent this period: $106,803
Total spent this election cycle: $742,436
Cash on hand: $2,657,423
Democratic State Rep. Christina Bohannan
Total receipts this period: $460,725
Total receipts this election cycle: $1,837,361
Total spent this period: $124,748
Total spent this election cycle: $568,509
Cash on hand: $1,269,296
2nd Congressional District
Incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson
Total receipts this period: $604,775
Total receipts this election cycle: $4,912,940
Total spent this period: $118,972
Total spent this election cycle: $3,538,528
Cash on hand: $2,054,828
Democratic State Sen. Liz Mathis
Total receipts this period: $451,104
Total receipts this election cycle: $2,627,462
Total spent this period: $122,600
Total spent this election cycle: $891,414
Cash on hand: $1,736,091
3rd Congressional District
Incumbent Democrat U.S. Rep. Cindy Axne
Total receipts this period: $646,120
Total receipts this election cycle: $4,385,179
Total spent this period: $643,796
Total spent this election cycle: $1,833,219
Cash on hand: $3,022,184
Republican State Sen. Zach Nunn
Total receipts this period: $254,353
Total receipts this election cycle: $1,004,949
Total spent this period: $178,784
Total spent this election cycle: $837,377
Cash on hand: $301,504
4th Congressional District
Incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra
Total receipts this period: $262,899
Total receipts this election cycle: $1,900,569
Total spent this period: $99,360
Total spent this election cycle: $893,271
Cash on hand: $1,029,367
Democrat Ryan Melton
Total receipts this period: $5,121
Total receipts this election cycle: $11,566
Total spent this period: $5,643
Total spent this election cycle: $6,253
Cash on hand: $5,313
Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: How much cash US Senate candidates Chuck Grassley, Mike Franken raised
