HELENA — Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock’s campaign for U.S. Senate said Monday its raised $7.7 million for the three-month period ending June 30 – a record single-quarter haul for a Senate candidate in Montana.
Bullock’s second-quarter fundraising, from April through June, ups his total campaign income this year to $11 million since he entered the race March 9.
Bullock, the state’s two-term governor, is challenging Republican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines in what’s becoming one of the most closely watched U.S. Senate contests in the country.
Democrats consider the Montana race one of a half-dozen where they have a legitimate chance to win a Republican-held seat, in their quest to take control of the U.S. Senate in the 2020 elections.
Daines hasn’t yet released his second-quarter fundraising totals, which aren’t due to be reported until July 15.
At the end of the last reporting period – May 13 – Daines had $5.75 million in his campaign account, compared to about $4 million for Bullock.
Bullock’s campaign said it spent about $3.5 million in the past three months, leaving him with $7.4 million in his campaign account as of June 30.
Bullock’s campaign said the record fundraising total is evidence that his candidacy is “continuing to gain momentum.”
“As voters grow tired of the dysfunction and chaos coming out of D.C., they’re turning to Gov. Bullock, who offers steady leadership and has a record of doing what’s right for all Montanans,” said his campaign manager, Megan Simpson.
She also said more than 95 percent of his donations during the quarter were under $200, showing his “grassroots support.”
The campaign didn’t have a breakdown on how much of the $7.7 million came from political-action committees, but said the vast majority of the money was from individual donors. Bullock is not accepting funds from corporate PACs, but has taken money from labor PACs and PACs associated with ideological causes.
The old single-quarter record for fundraising for a Montana U.S. Senate candidate was set in 2018 by Democrat Jon Tester, who took in $3.8 million from July through September of that year.
Bullock’s take from April through June is more than twice that amount.
