Kennedy-Markey race a dead heat – in dollars
Both camps check in with war chest totals just under $5M
U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy III and U.S. Sen. Edward Markey have emerged from the second quarter in a fundraising dead heat as their primary battle hurtles toward the finish line, though the incumbent is entering the last leg of the race with a slight cash advantage.
Both pols have raised more than $1.9 million since April, according to their campaigns.
Kennedy is entering the home stretch with $4.7 million in cash on hand — down from his first-quarter war chest of $6.2 million after launching $2.4 million in television advertising.
Markey has $4.8 million in cash on hand, up from $4.4 million last quarter, and has yet to go on air.
Kennedy, who out-raised Markey in each of the last two quarters, raked in the bulk of his cash in the last two months after he suspended campaign activities and fundraising through most of April due to the coronavirus pandemic, his team said.
“When Joe decided to pause all fundraising in the wake of COVID-19 to help raise money for the hardest hit families, communities and frontline workers, we fully expected to take a financial hit this quarter,” Kennedy campaign manager Nick Clemons said. “The extraordinary outpouring of support since we resumed fundraising in May indicates the growing excitement around Joe and this campaign.”
Markey notched his strongest fundraising quarter yet as he looks to fend off a primary challenge from the scion of one of America’s most storied political dynasties.
“Today’s new developments show the Ed Markey for U.S. Senate re-election campaign is the one with significant momentum just as we enter the last eight weeks of the primary campaign,” Markey campaign manager John Walsh said. “Our statewide grassroots advantage is clearly evident.”
The campaigns pulled out all the stops heading into the final fundraising deadline before their Sept. 1 primary.
Markey enlisted U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and U.S. Rep. Alexandria OcasioCortez, D-N.Y., for lastminute email blasts seeking donations, while Kennedy tapped former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke and U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster of New Hampshire to rally his supporters.
While Markey closed the financial gap with Kennedy, polling remains less clear. A UMass Lowell survey in early May showed the two in a statistical dead heat, while an Emerson College poll showed Kennedy with a 16-point lead.