The Democratic candidates in Colorado’s two most competitive congressional districts have big fundraising advantages over their Republican opponents heading into the November general election.
The races in the 3rd and 8th congressional districts may decide which party controls Congress next year, and the lopsided financial situation could force national Republican groups to pour money into the state.
U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo, a Thornton Democrat running for reelection in the 8th District, raised $1.2 million from June 6 to June 30, the latest federal campaign finance reporting period, ending the month with $3.5 million in cash.
Caraveo’s Republican opponent, state Rep. Gabe Evans, raised $374,000 during that period and ended June with $533,000 in campaign cash.
Caraveo won the 8th District, which stretches from the northeast Denver suburbs along U.S. 85 into Greeley, by about 1,600 votes two years ago. And she’s already getting national Democratic help as she seeks another term.
About half of the $1.2 million she raised came from the House Victory Project 2024, a joint fundraising committee led by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-New York, that benefits 20 Democratic U.S. House candidates.
Meanwhile, about $374,000 of the money Evans raised from June 6-30 also came via two joint fundraising committees operated by the top two GOP House leaders.
Joint fundraising committees allow donors to write a single large check with the proceeds divided among committee members. Caraveo belongs to nine joint fundraising committees, while Evans belongs to five.
Evans’ campaign spokesman Alan Philp said it will be difficult to match Caraveo’s fundraising in the 8th District, one of 22 U.S. House districts considered tossups in the fall.
“We’ll win because of Gabe’s hard work (and) grit,” Philp said.
In 2022, Caraveo outspent Republican state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer of Brighton $3.5 million to $1.4 million.
But GOP political action committees spent $10.2 million to support Kirkmeyer, compared with the $6.4 million spent by Democratic committees in the district in 2022.
That outside spending is already starting in the 8th District and will continue through Election Day:
- Next week, American Action Network, a nonprofit that doesn’t disclose its donors, will begin airing $650,000 in TV and digital ads in the district about immigration. The ads will air through mid-August and are meant to help Evans.
- The House Majority PAC, a Democratic super PAC, has reserved $3.9 million in TV time to help Caraveo
- The Congressional Leadership Fund, a GOP super PAC, has reserved $5.1 million in TV time in the Denver media market, apparently to help Evans
- The National Republican Congressional Committee has reserved $2.3 million in TV time to help Evans
- The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has reserved $2.3 million in TV time to help Caraveo
Americans for Prosperity Action, which supported Evans in the primary, will also be supporting him in the general election. That organization, linked to the national conservative political nonprofit of the same name, typically pays for door-to-door canvassing and mailers.
Jesse Mallory, a senior advisory for the PAC, said concerns about Democratic President Joe Biden could be a drag on Caraveo.
“The DCCC needs her to have any hope of catching the majority,” Mallory said. “They’re going to pump every dollar in an attempt to have her try and redefine herself.”
Adam Frisch has huge cash advantage in the Republican-leaning 3rd District
While the 3rd District, which spans the Western Slope into Pueblo and southeastern Colorado, is expected to be far less competitive than the 8th, there’s still plenty of money flowing into the race.
The cash advantage lies with Democrat Adam Frisch, a former Aspen city councilman, who ended June with $3.9 million in campaign cash compared to the $157,000 in Republican Jeff Hurd’s bank account.
Hurd, a Grand Junction attorney, faced five Republican opponents in the June 25 primary, while Frisch ran unopposed.
Frisch is a fundraising juggernaut who has capitalized on his narrow 2022 loss to U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert in the 3rd District. Boebert won by only 546 votes and relocated to a more Republican-leaning congressional district based on the other side of Colorado.
Mallory said AFP Action will also be supporting Hurd in the general election after spending nearly $370,000 to back him in the primary. “Even with all of Frisch’s money, he still has a huge mountain to climb,” Mallory said, nodding to how the district’s voters haven’t elected a Democrat since 2008. “That’s still a Republican-leaning seat.”
It’s unclear how involved other super PACs will be in the 3rd District. National Democrats and Republicans were waiting to see who won the primary before committing resources.
But Frisch is making up for the relative inactivity so far. His campaign has already spent $2.4 million to reserve TV time in the fall.
Colorado’s other congressional districts
Here’s a look at where congressional fundraising stood at the end of June in Colorado’s six other congressional districts: