Campaign finance reports are in; see who's backing South Carolina congressional candidates
With the general election just under 100 days away, Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. William Timmons leads all area congressional candidates in fundraising, though his challenger, Democrat Kathryn Harvey, has more cash on hand.
Timmons, seeking to retain his 4th District congressional seat, faces Harvey, the Spartanburg Democratic Party chair on Nov. 5 after winning a tight primary race against Adam Morgan, the state’s Freedom Caucus chairman and outgoing statehouse representative.
During the most recent Federal Ethics Commission filing, Timmons reported having $66,367.66 cash on hand after spending $2.7 million this election cycle.
Harvey, who did not have a primary challenger, reported having more cash on hand than Timmons with $98,538. During the most recent filing period, May 23 to June 30, Timmons outraised Harvey with $219,800 to Harvey’s $60,000.
More: Timmons wins, Freedom Caucus members sweep primary challengers; run-offs likely
Out of the money Timmons raised this period, $157,900 comes from political action committees and $61,171 from individuals. Harvey did not report any PAC contributions.
Who is contributing to the campaigns?
Most of Timmons’ support comes from large donors, with 88% of individual donations being $1,000 or more. His top donors include Charles Cascarilla, the New York-based founder of Paxos, a financial technology company that operates a cryptocurrency brokerage; James Brown, chief executive of Synergi Partners, and Stephen Schwarzman, chief executive of private equity firm Blackstone.
Harvey’s campaign also reported bringing in $176,000 during the entire election season - the most money any Democrat has raised for the fourth district race in more than three decades. Out of Harvey’s donations, 52% come from donations of $1,000 or more. Recognizable donors include Michelle Shain, who ran as a Democrat challenging the city of Greenville's Republican Mayor Knox White in 2023, and Susan Johnson, chief executive of Spartanburg's The Johnson Collection.
“These latest fundraising numbers prove that our campaign poses a formidable challenge to William Timmons,” Harvey said in a statement.
South Carolina’s 4th Congressional District is a GOP stronghold. The district has not had a Democratic or woman representative since Liz Patterson, who served from 1987-1993. She lost re-election to Republican Bob Inglis in 1992.
Next door, in the 3rd District, another with a Republican majority, Republican Sheri Biggs faces Democratic challenger Bryon Best.
Best has not reported any campaign funds. Campaigns are only obligated to file with the FEC if their campaign exceeds $5,000 in contributions or expenditures.
Biggs faced a crowded field in the GOP primary with six other challengers after U.S. Rep. Jeff Duncan, the district's sitting representative, announced he would not seek re-election. The crowded race ended in a runoff against Trump-backed candidate Mark Burns, which Biggs won narrowly with 28,156 votes to Burns’ 27,064.
During the election cycle, Biggs garnered $341,739, with $122,251 during the recent ethics period. She reported having $40,185 cash on hand.
Biggs’ contributions mostly come from large individual donors with 87% of contributions exceeding $1,000. Top donors include Lucian Lee, president of Hales Jewelers, and Michael Bride, owner of HMR Veterans Services, a local business consultant in Anderson.
Similar to the 4th district, the 3rd Congressional District is ruby red. A Democrat has not represented the district since 1995, when U.S. Rep. Butler Derrick retired after 20 years in office.
Savannah Moss covers politics for the Greenville News. Reach her at smoss@gannett.com or follow her on X @Savmoss.
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: FEC reports show congressional candidates raise millions for election
