McClain Delaney leads Parrott in campaign contributions, spending, FEC data shows

April McClain Delaney, the Democratic nominee running to represent Maryland's 6th District in Congress, raised over a million dollars in connection with her campaign in the second quarter of 2024 — about 80% of which came from the candidate herself.

According to quarterly campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Monday, McClain Delaney raised $1,034,297 during the second quarter of 2024.

Of that amount, McClain Delaney — a former Commerce Department official from Potomac who is married to former 6th District Rep. John Delaney — contributed $825,000.

Neil Parrott, a former state delegate from Hagerstown and McClain Delaney's Republican opponent, raised $283,397 in connection with his campaign during the second quarter of 2024.

The FEC requires congressional campaign committees to file quarterly campaign finance reports in addition to pre- and post-election campaign finance reports. July quarterly reports cover the period from April 1 to June 30.

The next campaign finance reporting deadline for candidates seeking local offices in Maryland, including school board, is Aug. 27, according to the State Board of Elections (SBE).

Including the figures from the second quarter of 2024, McClain Delaney has raised a total of $2,974,706 since she entered the 6th District race in October 2023. Of the election cycle total, $1,875,000 came from McClain Delaney.

Parrott, who entered the 6th District race in February 2024, has raised a total of $630,004 this election cycle. Parrott did not report any loans to his own campaign during the second quarter or at all during this election cycle.

McClain Delaney and Parrott secured the Democratic and Republican nominations for the open U.S. House seat in Maryland's 6th District after winning their respective parties' primary elections on May 14.

Data from SBE shows that McClain Delaney won the Democratic primary in the district with 40.38% of the vote. Parrott won the Republican primary with 45.93% of the vote.

The 6th District includes the northern part of Montgomery County and all of Frederick, Washington, Allegany and Garrett counties.

David Trone, who has represented the district since 2019, did not seek reelection to his seat in the House this year.

Trone instead ran for an open seat in the U.S. Senate, but lost in the Democratic primary to Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks.

Of the $283,397 raised by Parrott during the second quarter of 2024, $124,235 came though WinRed, an online Republican fundraising platform.

The House Freedom Fund, a conservative political action committee, contributed a total of $32,931 to Parrott's campaign during the second quarter of 2024, FEC data shows.

Aside from McClain Delaney herself, notable contributors to her campaign include Trone and his wife, June, who each donated $3,300 during the second quarter of 2024.

McClain Delaney also received sizable campaign contributions from liberal political action committees during the second quarter of 2024, including a total of $10,000 from Ameripac — a fund connected to U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D), who represents Maryland's 5th Congressional District.

July 2024 FEC reports

A diverging bar chart showing the money raised and spent by candidates in Maryland's 6th Congressional District during the second quarter of 2024 and this election cycle as a whole.

Money left over

During the second quarter of 2024, McClain Delaney spent a total of $1,584,353 in connection with her campaign. She ended the quarter with $217,099 cash on hand, according to the FEC.

Parrott spent a total of $216,102 in connection with his campaign during the second quarter of 2024. He ended the quarter with slightly more cash on hand than McClain Delaney at $222,395.

During this election cycle overall, Parrott has spent a total of $465,867 in connection with his campaign and McClain Delaney has spent a total of $2,757,607 in connection with her campaign.

According to FEC reports, both Parrott and McClain Delaney spent the majority of their money in the second quarter of 2024 on media buys and production.

In an interview on Wednesday, Parrott said he was "encouraged" by his campaign's second-quarter fundraising numbers and said he plans to ramp up his efforts as the Nov. 5 general election draws closer.

Asked about the disparity between money raised by his campaign and money raised by the McClain Delaney campaign, Parrott said he is used to facing an opponent with the ability to self-fund, referring to Trone.

Parrott previously won the Republican primary for the 6th District seat in 2020 with 65.2% of the vote and again in 2022 with 62.56%, according to SBE data.

Parrott subsequently lost the general election to Trone, the incumbent, in 2020 with 39.2% of the vote and again in 2022 with 45.15% of the vote, SBE data shows.

"I think when people look at this race, they don't want to see someone come in and buy the race again," Parrott said on Wednesday. "[McClain Delaney] can outspend me, but that doesn't mean she's going to win the election. I think we're going to see another rich Potomac person lose."

In response to a request for comment on Wednesday, McClain Delaney's campaign manager Nick London provided the following statement:

"We're proud of the support we've received thus far, and we're confident in the campaign we're running. In the coming months, we look forward to highlighting Neil Parrott's agenda for voters in the 6th District — including his decades-long fight to ban abortion in Maryland, his history of harmful legislation against women including against protections for victims of domestic violence, and his consistently discriminatory stances against the LGBTQ+ community."