U.S. Representative Robert “Beto” O’Rourke’s senatorial campaign has raised $38.1 million in three months, more than triple the $12 million that incumbent Senator Ted Cruz raised from July through September. So far in the campaign, the two candidates have set a new fundraising record for a U.S. Senate contest of $86 million, with the O’Rourke campaign taking in $61.2 million to Cruz’s $24.9 million.
Speaking at a campaign event in Houston on October 12, Cruz minimized the value of the O’Rourke’s large campaign war chest when it comes to actually winning the election.
“Liberal, left-wing activists are flooding Texas with cash,” said Cruz “But at the end of the day, you can’t buy Texas.”
During a meeting the same day with the Dallas Morning News’ editorial board, O’Rourke said that while much of the money is being used for television ads in expensive media markets, the bulk of the money is being used to support a voter turnout operation across Texas.
However, an October 12 New York Times report noted that some Democrats think that O’Rourke should share some of his campaign bounty with other, better-positioned candidates.
“It’s great that O’Rourke has inspired so many people and raised so much money, and if he can spend it all effectively in Texas, he is well within his rights to do so,” the Times quoted Matthew Miller, a veteran Democratic strategist and Texas native. “But he could have a huge impact for the party by sharing some of it with the D.S.C.C. [Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee] so it could be spent in states where candidates just need a little extra to get over the hump.”
Despite the tens of millions of dollars being spent on the O’Rourke campaign, Cruz still holds a nine-percentage-point lead over Beto — 54 to 45 percent — according to a the latest Quinnipiac University poll.
“Is the Beto bubble bursting or just hissing away with a slow leak?” the Fort Worth Star-Telegram quoted Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll. “With less than four weeks until Election Day, Congressman Beto O’Rourke has hit a wall and remains the same nine points behind Sen. Ted Cruz as he was when Quinnipiac University polled the race last month.
“The election is far from over, but Sen. Cruz would have to suffer a major collapse for him to lose.”
Photo: AP Images
Warren Mass writes from Cleburne, Texas.
Related article:
Texas Senate Race Pits Liberal Robert “Beto” O’Rourke vs. Ted Cruz
