In the race for congressional campaign cash, 2 Kentucky contenders widen their lead

Morgan Watkins, Louisville Courier Journal
·3 min read
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State Sen. Morgan McGarvey greatly outraised state Rep. Attica Scott again in the Democratic primary race for retiring U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth's seat, the latest fundraising figures show.

Meanwhile, Sen. Rand Paul continued to far outpace his highest-profile challenger, Democrat and former state Rep. Charles Booker, in the financial phase of Kentucky's 2022 U.S. Senate race.

Here's the latest fundraising news on the two big congressional contests facing Louisville voters this year:

The financial battle for John Yarmuth's seat

McGarvey got a fast start when he launched his campaign in October, and new data shows he built up that lead even more in the first three months of 2022.

McGarvey brought in about $568,000 in contributions from Jan. 1 through March 31, Federal Election Commission data shows. That puts his total contributions to date at over $1.3 million.

More: McGarvey vs. Scott and more: What to expect from Kentucky's congressional elections

The May 17 primary isn't far off, and he had plenty of money left to fuel his campaign at the end of March, with around $950,000 in cash on hand.

Comparatively, Scott brought in about $57,500 in contributions between Jan. 1 and March 31, putting her total contributions to date at about $210,300.

FEC data shows Scott personally has given a little over $10,250 to her campaign during this election cycle.

Her campaign didn't have much money left by the end of the March, with just under $26,000 left in cash on hand.

Meanwhile, in the crowded Republican primary election for Yarmuth's seat:

  • Stuart Ray raised the most, bringing in nearly $173,000 in contributions from January through March. FEC records show he gave $100,000 to his campaign last year and another $1,399 in January.

  • Rhonda Palazzo of Louisville, who ran and lost to Yarmuth in November 2020, brought in $2,575 in contributions from January through March. FEC data shows she contributed $1,000 to her campaign in March.

  • Mike Craven and Gregory Puccetti of Louisville didn't report any contributions from the first three months of 2022, though they each personally have chipped in over $110,000 and over $20,000 to their respective campaigns.

  • No FEC fundraising data was available Monday for Louisville Republicans Daniel Cobble, Justin Gregory and Darien Barrios Moreno.

Money flows for Rand Paul in reelection race

Paul had another great fundraising quarter, hauling in over $3.4 million in contributions from January through March.

FEC records show he has raised a cool $17.5 million (and change) over the course of this campaign cycle. And he still had plenty of money left to spend, with around $8.6 million in cash on hand at the end of last month.

More: Rep. Thomas Massie, Sen. Rand Paul among those suing CDC over mask requirements on planes

Former Democratic state Rep. Charles Booker, left, is looking to take the place of Republican Rand Paul in the U.S. Senate.
Former Democratic state Rep. Charles Booker, left, is looking to take the place of Republican Rand Paul in the U.S. Senate.

Booker, meanwhile, hasn't been able to keep pace with Paul, whom he hopes to battle in the November election if he wins the May 17 Democratic primary.

Booker raised nearly $837,000 in the first quarter of 2022, bringing his total contributions to date up to close to $3.2 million.

His campaign had about $527,600 in cash on hand at the end of March.

Other candidates are running in Kentucky's Republican and Democratic primaries for Senate, too:

  • Democrat Ruth Gao of Louisville raised $2,160 in contributions from January through March, personally giving $2,040 to her campaign, per FEC data.

  • Republican Tami Stainfield of Marion personally has contributed over $19,000 to her campaign to date, most of which she chipped in during 2022's first quarter.

  • FEC fundraising data wasn't available Monday for Democrats Joshua Wesley Blanton Sr. of Louisville and John Merrill of McKee, or for Republicans Arnold Blankenship of Ashland, Valerie "Dr. Val" Fredrick of Murray, Paul V. Hamilton of Nicholasville, and John Schiess of Rice Lake, Wisconsin

Morgan Watkins is The Courier Journal's chief political reporter. Contact her at mwatkins@courierjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter: @morganwatkins26.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky's Rand Paul, Morgan McGarvey continue huge fundraising leads