By Yue Stella Yu
Cal Matters
CalMatters
SACRAMENTO — Between April 1 and June 30, the former L.A. Dodgers and San Diego Padres star outraised his Democratic opponent, Rep. Adam Schiff, by more than $1 million, according to the latest campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission on Monday.
But Garvey entered July with less cash — $3.3 million in the bank — than Schiff’s $6.5 million, reports show.
Garvey — who is skipping this week’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and the most recent state GOP gathering as well and is instead focusing heavily on fundraising, TV interviews and his recent trip to Israel — reported raising $5.4 million during the three-month period, with roughly half from donors who each gave less than $200. He reported spending $3.7 million. His campaign also has almost $467,000 in debt for printing, mailing, data processing and fundraising costs as well as donor lists, records show.
“Californians are tired of the status quo, they are tired of the division, they are tired of Washington D.C. not working together, they (are) tired of Adam Schiff representing his party bosses rather than them, and now they are speaking up with their checkbooks,” Garvey said in a statement today.
Schiff’s campaign reported raising $4.1 million, including $3.8 million in direct contributions from donors and almost $150,000 transferred from other committees. He raised a little more than $1 million from small donors who each gave less than $200. He reported spending $2.4 million.
Schiff, 64, one of the Democrats in Congress strongly backing Israel during the Gaza War, also reported an additional $67,000 in checks collected by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on his behalf. From January through June, the pro-Israel political committee has delivered Schiff’s campaign more than $112,000.
The latest fundraising numbers are a shift from previous quarters, where Schiff consistently led Garvey in campaign contributions and spending. Between Feb. 15 and March 31, Schiff shelled out $12.5 million, five times what Garvey spent during the six weeks, and entered April with triple the amount Garvey had in the bank. Schiff, who launched his campaign months ahead of Garvey, has raised a total of $39 million throughout the election cycle, whereas Garvey has raised $11 million.
Even with a shrinking fundraising gap, Schiff’s outlook in the race remains a near-certain victory. No Republican has won a statewide race in California since 2006. And in a June survey conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California, Schiff earned support from 62% of the respondents, compared to Garvey’s 37%.
But Schiff is worried other Senate and House races may suffer.
In recent weeks, after President Joe Biden’s poor June 27 debate performance, a growing number of Democrats are concerned about Biden’s ability to defeat former President Donald Trump, with 22 of the 264 congressional Democrats publicly calling for him to drop out.
Schiff, having publicly expressed concerns with Biden’s performance and age, is privately warning donors of Democratic losses in down-ballot races if Biden remains in the race, the New York Times reported today.
Schiff’s campaign declined to comment on the reported comments or on the fundraising update. But in a fundraising email today, Schiff urged supporters to make sure Garvey “doesn’t outraise us again” and deemed Garvey’s fundraising edge and GOP’s heavy spending “the outcome we feared.”
Garvey, 75, has publicly called for Biden to drop out, deeming him a man “who is 81 years of age and has difficulty focusing” during a July 2 Fox LA interview. However, Garvey has been reluctant to associate too closely with Trump, acknowledging only earlier this month that he voted for Trump in March and plans to support Trump again in November.
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Yue Stella Yu (pronounced Yu-eh Stella Yu) is a politics and campaign reporter for CalMatters, a public interest journalism venture. She previously covered state politics for Bridge Michigan, where she focused on gun and labor policies, money.