A.G. Gancarski
Neither of Jacksonville’s two first-term U.S. Congressmen have officially filed for re-election.
However, Republican John Rutherford of Congressional District 4 and Democrat Al Lawson of CD 5 continue to sock money away for that inevitability.
Of the two, Rutherford had the more active third quarter of 2017.
Rutherford’s total receipts are now up to $241,484, with $146,044 cash on hand.
Rutherford hauled in over $155,000 of that $241,000 total from January to June 2017, meaning he raised over $85,000 during the last three months.
Most of Rutherford’s spending has been on the mechanics of campaigning: consultants, fundraisers, et al.
Among Rutherford’s donors this quarter — military-industrial complex companies, including Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics, and California Rep. Kevin McCarthy‘s “Majority Committee.”
McCarthy, the Majority Leader, supported Rutherford ahead of his 2016 election.
Individual receipts and expenditures for Lawson’s third quarter have yet to be uploaded to the Federal Elections Commission portal.
However, aggregates include $190,126 raised (all but $51,000 of that from committees), with $97,876 cash on hand.
As of the last quarterly report filed in July, Lawson had brought in over $158,000, doing even better than Rutherford. However, it’s clear that fundraising momentum slowed down, with roughly $32,000 brought in this quarter.
Neither Rutherford nor Lawson faces meaningful competition yet, though speculation has swirled about emergent challenges to one or both incumbents.
This piece will be updated with more specific data for Lawson when available.
