Maryland’s Klacik raised whopping $6.4 million after Trump shared viral ad; Mfume warns seat is ‘not for sale’

Kimberly Klacik, the Baltimore-area congressional candidate who has been promoted on social media by President Donald Trump and his supporters, reported raising $6.4 million in three months — a huge haul for a Republican in a Democratic-dominated district.

Klacik, who appeared during the Republican National Convention in August following the release of a widely viewed campaign ad, raised $6,445,451 from July 1 through Sept. 30, according to her report filed Thursday night with the Federal Election Commission.

Most of the contributions came from outside Maryland.

“I think we’ve been fortunate with that viral campaign ad that started the whole thing,” Klacik said Friday in a phone interview from Arizona. She is taking part in rallies there with conservative candidates and supporters, including Donald Trump Jr., the president’s son.

Klacik’s 7th Congressional District opponent, Democratic U.S. Rep. Kweisi Mfume, reported raising $184,349 during the same fundraising quarter.

He said in a statement Friday that Klacik is trying to buy the election.

“This congressional seat belongs to the people of Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Howard County,” Mfume said. “Donald Trump and Kim Klacik cannot buy it. They should take their money and greed somewhere else, because we are not for sale. Not now, not ever.”

Klacik reported having $3.6 million in cash on hand as of Sept. 30. Mfume’s report said he had $269,342. The deadline for the reports was midnight Thursday.

Klacik’s fundraising total amounts to “a lot for a cycle, especially for a Republican in such a blue district,” said Brendan Quinn, outreach manager for the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington-based watchdog group.

The candidates raising the most money nationally are "typically members of leadership, or people with really high public profiles, or people who are running against people with high public profiles,” Quinn said.

According to statistics compiled by the center, Klacik has raised more in the two-year congressional campaign than all but about a dozen current U.S. House members. The list is topped by Republican Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the minority whip ($25.8 million); Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California ($16.6 million); former Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, who is also a California Republican ($16.3 million); and Democratic House Speaker Pelosi of California ($14.2 million).

The 7th Congressional District — which includes portions of the Baltimore City and the counties of Baltimore and Howard — is one of the state’s most Democratic congressional districts, with Democrats holding a 4-1 voter registration advantage.

Klacik lives in Middle River, which is not in the 7th District, but has pledged to move to the district if elected.

She has touted her experience working for her nonprofit helping disadvantaged women.

In her Aug. 24 Republican convention video, Klacik urged Republicans not to give up on running in cities that are Democratic strongholds.

Her appearance came after a campaign video in which she walked along Baltimore streets full of vacant homes and asserted that Democratic politicians have done nothing good for Baltimore and other cities. The ad resonated with Trump, who shared it with his tens of millions of Twitter followers.

Mfume, 71, overwhelmingly defeated Klacik, 38, in an April election to fill the remainder of the term of his late friend, Elijah Cummings. The Nov. 3 election is for a new, two-year term beginning in January.

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