Hickenlooper, Gardner post big fundraising totals

Republican U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner and Democratic candidate John Hickenlooper are neck and neck in fundraising this quarter, according to totals released this week by their campaigns.

Before an Oct. 15 campaign finance reporting deadline — at which point more details will be available — both candidates say they have topped $2 million in the past three months.

Gardner was ahead, with $2.45 million to Hickenlooper’s $2.1 million. Gardner, the incumbent with no primary challenger, is sitting on $6.68 million total, his campaign says.

“Senator Gardner’s strongest fundraising quarter yet proves Gardner’s grassroots support continues to grow,” campaign manager Casey Contres said in a statement, “and Coloradans want to reelect Cory Gardner because he delivers bipartisan results for this state. While the slew of far-left candidates vying to challenge him struggle to gain traction, Senator Gardner will continue to make sure this campaign has the necessary resources to communicate his record of accomplishments to the voters and win in 2020.”

Hickenlooper, one of 10 Democrats vying for the party’s nomination, has been in the race fewer than six weeks, and has $1.7 million in hand, his campaign says. He will almost certainly have to spend more aggressively than Gardner in coming months in order to fend off his primary challengers.

“We’re grateful to have received support from across Colorado for our campaign to bring change to Washington,” Hickenlooper said in a statement that his campaign provided. “Each and every person who chipped in recognizes that Colorado needs a new independent voice, a Senator who reflects our values and will work to bring people together and get things done on issues that matter to Coloradans — like expanding access and controlling costs for health care, and tackling climate change head on.”

Hickenlooper dropped out of the presidential primary in late August, having struggled to rise from the deep primary’s bottom tier in polling and fundraising. His spokeswoman, Melissa Miller, says none of the $2.1 million raised for the Senate race includes money transferred over from his presidential campaign. Of the $2.1 million, 95% of contributions were at or under $200, the campaign said.

Hickenlooper’s Senate primary challengers include Andrew Romanoff, Colorado’s former House speaker, who placed second in a primary battle against U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet nine years ago. Romanoff, who is running to Hickenlooper’s left, particularly on climate issues, is the only other Democrat still in the primary field who has raised more than $1 million over the course of the race. His campaign is not yet releasing totals from this past quarter.