Washington – Connecticut’s incumbents continued to outpace their challengers in campaign fundraising for this election cycle, according to the latest reports with the Federal Elections Commission.
Rep. Elizabeth Esty, D-5th District, has raised nearly $1.5 million, while rival Republican Clay Cope, Sheman’s first selectman, has pulled in a little more than $61,000. A third candidate in the race, independent John Pistone, did not raise or spend the $5,000 threshold required by the FEC to file a campaign finance report.
Rep. John Larson, D-1st District, has raised more than $1.1 million, while his GOP challenger, businessman Matthew Corey, has raised less than $9,000.
But it is Rep. Jim Himes, D-4th District, who leads the Connecticut delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives in fundraising.
Himes has raised almost $1.7 million in this election cycle and ended the reporting period with $2.1 million in his war chest, while his challenger, state Rep. John Shaban, raised $91,414.
In the 3rd congressional district, Democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro has raised $814,000 while her GOP rival, Angel Cadena, has not reached the $5,000 threshold necessary to file a report with the FEC.
Following the trend of incumbency advantage, Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, has also outpaced his rivals in amassing political cash.
Courtney raised more than $850,000, while the Republican vying for his seat, Daria Novak, raised $24,638.
Another candidate in the race, libertarian Daniel Reale, has not reported raising any money.