Ronchetti outraises Lujan Grisham by $450K

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Jul. 8—Buoyed by a hotly contested primary election win, Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Ronchetti outraised incumbent Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham by more than $450,000 in the last campaign reporting period.

But with a cash balance of more than $2.7 million, Lujan Grisham still has a fundraising lead over Ronchetti, a former TV weatherman who reported $1.4 million in the bank.

Campaign finance reports filed Thursday show Ronchetti pulled in just over $1.2 million between June 1 and July 2. Lujan Grisham raised $755,000 during the same period.

"You can feel how energized New Mexicans are for a new direction, and I'm truly humbled by the support we have from New Mexicans in every corner of the state," Ronchetti said in a statement.

"People are ready for change and are supporting our campaign in record numbers, with their time, their energy, and their financial contributions for the movement we're creating. New Mexicans want safer streets and an economy that doesn't crush family budgets," he added.

A spokeswoman for the governor's reelection campaign tried to put a positive spin on the latest fundraising totals.

"Governor Lujan Grisham continues to be in one of the strongest positions an incumbent governor in New Mexico has ever been — she's one month into the general election and has nearly twice as much in the bank as her GOP opponent," Kendall Witmer said in a statement.

Witmer also took a shot at Ronchetti, saying Lujan Grisham has been busy over the last month "protecting a woman's right to choose" following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, as well as helping communities affected by wildfire and flooding.

At the same time, she said, Ronchetti has "spouted out of touch policies that would hurt average New Mexicans and their families."

Ronchetti's campaign said he has received more than 14,571 contributions so far and that 95 percent came from New Mexicans. A vast majority of contributions, 86 percent, were $100 or less.

"Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham relies on out-of-state dark money groups and the political elite while our campaign is focused on hard-working New Mexicans who deserve better than the career politicians who have run New Mexico for far too long," Ronchetti said. "This reporting period is critical because it represents the beginning of this general election. New Mexicans are definitely ready for change."

Follow Daniel J. Chacón on Twitter @danieljchacon.