For Republican Kelly Ayotte, it’s all going according to plan.
For Democrat Joyce Craig, the campaign is already off-script.
Wednesday was filing day for campaign finance disclosures, and the four major candidates for governor had to reveal the status of their fundraising efforts. The headline?
Former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte raised more than four times as much as her Republican rival, former state Senate President Chuck Morse. And she outpaced both Democrats, outgoing Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig and Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington.
Ayotte, a Nashua Republican, brought in an impressive $2.7 million and reported $2.4 million cash on hand. She averaged more than $2,000 per donation, with less than $3,000 total coming in small-dollar non-itemized contributions.
“The Democrats’ nominee will undoubtedly have a mountain of resources from out-of-state special interests hoping to buy the corner office in New Hampshire,” said campaign spokesman John Corbett. “That’s why it’s critical for Republicans to elect the strongest conservative who can win — and Kelly Ayotte is proving to be that candidate by building the strongest grassroots gubernatorial campaign in state history.”
Morse, who ran an unsuccessful bid for U.S. Senate last year, reported just over $900,000 in total funds raised and $850,000 cash on hand, about a third of Ayotte’s war chest. His report showed some $250,000 of that was a transfer from his state Senate campaign funds, another $92,000 from his U.S. Senate bid, $50,000 from people named “Morse,” and another $6,000 from his Atkinson business, Freshwater Farms.
With only $50,000 in outgoing funds, Morse has the leanest burn rate thus far, spending up to 80 percent less than some of his competitors to this point. As his campaign manager, Maya Harvey, noted Wednesday, “Chuck Morse’s fundraising in the first quarter alone surpasses the total amount Gov. Sununu raised throughout the entirety of his 2016 primary. Gov. Sununu won that race despite facing significant financial disadvantages, securing three subsequent terms in office.
“I firmly believe we’re on the verge of witnessing history repeat itself,” Harvey said.
GOP insiders expected Ayotte to have a solid fundraising number, but the $2.7 million figure surprised many. “She’s just at a different level than the rest of the field,” one GOP source told NHJournal.
And that includes incumbent Manchester Mayor Craig, whose $1.26 million was more than her opponent, but not by a significant margin. Warmington raised just over $1 million, and while her burn rate was high — she only had $697,765 cash on hand — it is a sign she can be competitive with Craig in the fundraising fight. Craig had more money in the bank (just under $1 million), but it was not enough to claim the “prohibitive favorite” label the mayor of the state’s largest city was looking for.
“Warmington’s number is more surprising because Joyce Craig is the perceived front runner with most of the Democratic Party leadership support,” one Concord insider said. “This probably hit Craig like a sledgehammer when she saw the numbers. She’s in for a major fight.”
The question is whether Warmington can keep up the fundraising pace. She has the slimmest war chest of the four candidates and $150,000 of her total haul is a loan to herself.
Warmington also has a $27,500 in-kind donation for ‘consulting fees’ from a consultant also named — Cinde Warmington.
However, Warmington won the small-dollar battle, raising more than $40,000 in donations of $50 or less, while $30,000 of Craig’s money came through similar small-dollar donations.
“I’m grateful for the immense support we have received from hardworking Granite Staters who recognize that we can build a New Hampshire where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. This report builds on the incredible momentum for our campaign,” said Craig in a statement. “I know what it takes to win a tough election, and I’m the only candidate with the critical experience flipping a seat from red to blue. To support hardworking families, defend public education, and protect access to abortion, we need a proven candidate who has delivered real results for Granite Staters.”
See all campaign finance disclosures on the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s website.
