Central Minnesota Candidate Campaign Finance Reports

The Minnesota Campaign Finance Board has released the pre-primary fundraising data for candidates across Minnesota. Here are the reports from some of the Central Minnesota races that I have been following or keeping an eye on…

In Senate District 14:

Sen. Michelle Fischbach (R) vs. Mike Sharp (DFL)

Fischbach ends the period in good shape with  over $16,000 cash on hand (View Report) which includes a $5,000 personal loan to her campaign. Her opponent, Mike Sharp entered the race relatively late but ends the period with $5,600 cash on hand (View Report) due in no small part to a $4,000 contribution from the Senate District 14 DFL.

Tim O’Driscoll (R) vs. Rob Jacobs (DFL)

O’Driscoll, the mayor of Sartell, threw his hat into this rate early after Dan Severson chose to run for Secretary of State. He ends the period with just over $9,400(View Report). Rob Jacobs, the DFL challenger and ’08 candidate, jumped into the race at the last minute. He ends the period with $3,651 (View Report).

Rep. Larry Hosch (DFL) vs. Tom Ellenbecker (R)

Representative Hosch ends the period with $4,660 on hand (View Report) while his opponent, Tom Ellenbecker, ends the period with $893 (View Report) giving Hosch a considerable cash advantage.

In Senate District 15:

John Pederson (R) vs. Bruce Hentges (DFL)

Pederson ends this reporting period with just over $14,300 on hand (View Report) while his opponent, Bruce Hentges, ends the period with only $5,911 on hand (View Report). Hentges appears to have raised nearly as much as Pederson even though he entered the race later. However, he also burned through more of those campaign funds.

Steve Gottwalt (R) vs. Anne Nolan (DFL)

Representative Gottwalt ends the period with a fairly substantial warchest of $18,891 (View Report) while his opponent, Anne Nolan, ends the period with $3,194 (View Report). Nolan is going to have to work her tail off in order to overcome this financial disadvantage.

King Banaian (R) vs. Zach Dorholt (DFL)

Banaian ends this reporting period with $10,736 (View Report). His probable DFL opponent, Zach Dorholt, entered the race after the retirement of Representative Larry Haws but was still able to end the period with $3,222 (View Report).

In Senate District 16:

Sen. Lisa Fobbe (DFL) vs. Dave Brown (R)

Senator Fobbe has a monster warchest with over $31,000 cash on hand (View Report) while her opponent, Dave Brown, has roughly half that amount with $15,890 (View Report) which includes $4,800 in loans to the campaign from a couple sources. The question is, will this huge cash advantage for Fobbe be enough to overcome the very conservative nature of the district?

Rep. Gail Kulick-Jackson (DFL) vs. Sondra Erickson (R)

With a $5,000 personal loan to the campaign, Representative Kulick-Jackson ends the reporting period with $25,000 on hand (View Report) while her opponent, Sondra Erickson ends the period with $14,665 (View Report) that includes an $8,000 carryover from her last campaign.

Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer (R) vs. Tom Heyd (DFL)

Representative Kiffmeyer ends her reporting period with $8,920 on hand (View Report) while her opponent, Tom Heyd, ends with $4,245 (View Report).

In Senate District 18:

Scott Newman (R) vs. Hal Kimball (DFL)

This race is a little bit out of my range but it involves a good friend, Hal Kimball, so I have been watching with great interest to see if he can win this very conservative district. Newman has taken in over $10,000 in contributions, given himself a $5,000 loan, and burned through almost all of that leaving him with $302 on hand (View Report). Kimball, on the other hand, ends with $10,567 on hand (View Report). I guess we know who the fiscally responsible candidate is in this race.

I will let you argue it out in the comments section about who wins and who loses in these reports…