Republican congressional candidate Robert Smullen has personally loaned his campaign another $500,000, bringing his self-funding, so far, to $1 million in the race for the open seat in the 21st Congressional District, which includes Schoharie County.
Smullen, a state Assembly member from Johnstown whose district includes Richfield in Otsego County, had $158,774 in contributions in the first quarter, bringing his total contributions in the race to $171,897.
Amsterdam businessman Anthony Constantino, who is running against Smullen in a June 23 Republican primary, previously had personally loaned his campaign $7.6 million.
Constantino, who lives in Edinburg, in Saratoga County, is not accepting campaign contributions.
The seat, open because six-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-Schuylerville) is not seeking reelection, appears to be shaping up to be a three-way general election contest between Smullen, Constantino and Democrat Blake Gendebien, a farmer from Lisbon, in St. Lawrence County.
Constantino is circulating nominating petitions to appear on an independent line, which would provide him a line on the general election ballot regardless of the outcome of the Republican primary, said campaign spokesman Paul Antonelli.
To be successful, he must collect 3,500 valid signatures from registered voters in the district who have not signed any other nominating petitions.
Smullen already has the Conservative nomination, which assures him a line on the general election ballot regardless of the outcome of the Republican primary.
Gendebien is the only major party candidate who is not primarily self-funding his campaign, according to campaign finance reports the campaigns filed last Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission. Gendebien received $602,277 in contributions in the first quarter, bringing total contributions in the election cycle so far to $4.92 million, as of March 31.
Gendebien continued to draw from a strong national donor base, receiving itemized individual contributions from 45 states and Washington, D.C., in the first quarter.
Smullen received itemized individual contributions from eight states in the first quarter.
Stuart Amoriell, who is challenging Gendebien in a June 23 Democratic primary, has largely self-funded his campaign. Amoriell, a restaurant owner from Lake Placid, personally loaned his campaign $93,504 and received $17,043 in contributions in the first quarter, his opening quarter for fundraising.
“In any given election cycle, very few House candidates — less than 5% on average — self-fund. That is provide more than 90% of their campaign contributions themselves. Nonetheless, that may add up to 50 to 80 candidates per cycle, given that 2,000 to 2,500 candidates typically run for House seats in a cycle,” said Matt Dickinson, a political science professor at Middlebury College. “Self-funders are almost always challengers, and they generally don’t do well. If they had broad support, they likely wouldn’t need to rely so heavily on self-funding.”
Political action committees are beginning to show some interest in the race.
In the first quarter, Smullen received $2,500 from Cross Partisan II PAC of Virginia; $1,000 from the North Country Leadership PAC of Mooers, whose primary donor is Brent Davison, who is running for Clinton Country Sheriff; $1,500 from the New York State Dental Association; $5,000 from Raptor PAC, the political action committee of Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas); and $500 from The Guardian Fund, which supports conservative candidates who are veterans. Ross Perot Jr., son of the 1992 and 1996 presidential candidate, contributed $7,000, the maximum allowable, to Smullen’s campaign.
In the first quarter, Gendebien received $1,000 from Common Good PAC, a Democratic political action committee, and $9,000 from Impossible to Inevitable, a multi-candidate fund-raising committee associated with Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland).
Constantino spent $1.56 million in the first quarter and had $3.51 million in his campaign fund, as of March 31.
Smullen spent $195,069 in the first quarter and had $963,973 in his campaign fund, as of March 31.
Gendebien spent $351,690 in the first quarter and had $2.46 million in his campaign fund, as of March 31.
Amoriell spent $94,842 in the first quarter and had $15,806 in his campaign fund, as of March 31.
Democrat Dylan Hewitt, who suspended his campaign in late March, raised $48,140 in the first quarter and spent $80,032. He had $88,044 in his campaign fund, as of March 31.
Hewitt has said that once all of his campaign expenses are paid, he will distribute remaining funds to county Democratic committees and Democratic state legislative campaigns in the district.
Stefanik refunded $492,567 in contributions in the first quarter. She had $10.8 million left in her campaign fund, as of March 31.