6:13 p.m. CORRECTION: The original version of this post contained an incorrect second quarter fundraising figure for Kaine. He raised $2.25 million.
Senate fundraising numbers are just beginning to trickle in, but already we're seeing a pattern of some clear winners and those who didn't fare quite as well.
In the winners category, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine clearly stands out, with his $2.25 million haul. It's likely to be one of the top fundraising figures of the quarter. Former Sen. George Allen, R-Va., hasn't yet released his latest numbers; he raised $1.5 million in the first quarter.
In New Mexico, state Auditor Hector Balderas made his mark on the Democratic race, raising over $400,000 in the first quarter, nearly matching the $485,000 that Rep. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M. brought in. Balderas' ability to fundraise was one of the biggest question marks on his campaign - that's not the case any longer. And Heinrich's near half-million haul is a little underwhelming, given that he's a sitting member of Congress with the fundraising perks that position entails. With Hispanics making up a majority of the state's Democratic electorate, Balderas looks like he's putting together a very credible campaign.
In Massachusetts, City Year co-founder Alan Khazei easily outdistanced the fundraising totals of his Democratic rivals (activist Bob Massie and Newton Mayor Setti Warren just over 200,000 combined during the same period), bringing in over $920,000. Unless someone else jumps in the race (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau special adviser Elizabeth Warren?), he looks like he'll be the Democrat most mentioned as a credible challenger to Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass.
And in the Keystone State, Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., raised $1.3 million in the second quarter and has $3.1 million in the bank: solid figures, especially considering the number of Republicans shying away from a Casey challenge.
On Friday, state Sen.
Jake Corman opted against a run, making him the latest Republican to pass on a chance at taking on Casey. The void comes despite the fact that Casey, while still buoyed by strong poll numbers, is far from a lock to win re-election. Despite the state's heavy Democratic registration, Republicans won two statewide elections in the Keystone State last year - in the gubernatorial and Senate elections. It's also poised to yet again to be a presidential battleground in 2012, and the lack of a compelling GOP Senate nominee atop the ticket could be a major disappointment for national and Pennsylvania Republicans alike.
Meanwhile, Florida Senate President
Mike Haridopolos was unable to come close to sustaining his impressive $2.6 million first-quarter haul,
bringing in just $900,000.
There is at least a partial explanation for how well Haridopolos did in the first quarter. A
Miami Herald analysis of the $2.6 million he raised showed that he received his biggest chunks of money from the special interests who wanted something out of the 60-day legislative session, which ended in early May. Haridopolos campaign manage
Tim Baker noted to the
St. Petersburg Times that the state Senate President held no fundraising events while the legislature was in session and has been focused mainly on grassroots campaigning since the session.
While Haridopolos' second quarter haul was not half-bad, the trend lines aren't encouraging. If he's outraised by former state House Majority Leader
Adam Hasner or former Sen.
George Lemieux this quarter, it doesn't bode well for the state Senate president's primary prospects.
In Indiana, Treasurer
Richard Mourdock, whose first quarter haul was underwhelming at $157,000, told
Hotline On Call in an interview that he had raised an estimated $450,000 - $500,000 since March 1st (Mourdock announced his bid in late February), and had raised between $150,000 and $160,000 during the month of March -- meaning that he raised between $290,000 and $350,000 during the second quarter.
"We're pleased, we keep plodding along, we know that the other side will always have more financial resources than we have," Mourdock said. "But this isn't a campaign about money, it's a primary, and it's about organization."
Meanwhile, Sen.
Dick Lugar, R-Ind.,
raised $900,000 during the second quarter and finished with $3.5 million in the bank.
Lugar has long been considered vulnerable to a conservative challenge next year, but Mourdock may not be getting the traction he needs to take out the veteran lawmaker.
Alex Roarty, Jim O'Sullivan, and Julie Sobel contributed to this post
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