The Bangor Daily News used the adjective "leapfrogs" in their headline yesterday to describe the fundraising prowess of Sara Gideon, the likely Democratic opponent of the awful Susan Collins, and I think it's an apt one. For the first time in her nearly quarter-century in the U.S. Senate she has a real challenger.
Polls are close and the race is rated a toss-up, but how sweet it would be to see Maine get a real representative in there, instead of some mindless toady like Susan Collins.
Source: Bangor Daily News
AUGUSTA, Maine — Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Sara Gideon raised $7.1 million during the first quarter of 2020, surpassing Republican Sen. Susan Collins after the incumbent had already set a record for the most fundraising during a Maine campaign.
Gideon’s fundraising during that period — which nearly equaled what she had raised during the entirety of 2019 — brought her to about $14.8 million raised so far this cycle, according to filings that were due to the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday.
Collins raised $2.4 million during the first three months of the year, bringing her total fundraising for the cycle to $13.2 million. She still had the edge in cash on hand over Gideon with $5.6 million compared to the Democrat’s $4.6 million as of March 31.
Polls for a general election have shown Collins and Gideon virtually neck and neck in a race that has become a top target for national Democrats looking to flip the U.S. Senate. The campaign has seen millions of dollars in outside spending from groups on both sides, including super PACs like the conservative 1820 PAC and liberal Senate Majority PAC, as well as so-called “dark money” groups including Maine Momentum and One Nation.
