Global Courant
Democratic legislative candidates in Virginia have a head start on fundraising, thanks in part to donations from a George Soros-affiliated political action committee and having more nominating contests than their Republican counterparts, a nonprofit found.
The fundraising lead comes as the historically red state, which has been trending blue in recent years, just elected a Republican governor for the first time since 2009 and the state’s political parties see new opportunities to win additional seats in the legislature. to win.
Candidates for the Virginia Senate and House of Representatives collectively raised more than $20 million between April 1 and June 8, with the Democratic candidates raising about $14 million, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonpartisan fundraiser in the United States. politics.
The Virginia primary is next week, Tuesday, June 20, 2023.
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Virginia legislative candidates have raised more than $20 million in cash and other donations in just over two months leading up to the primary on Tuesday, June 20, 2023. (Bob Brown/Richmond Times transmission via AP)
Some of the other largest fundraising totals came from Northern Virginia, where a political action committee funded by liberal donor George Soros has earmarked large amounts of money for prosecution races.
The races include backing incumbents in Arlington, Fairfax and Loudoun counties — many of whom won four years ago with a focus on criminal justice reform agendas — seeking re-election.
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Arlington Commonwealth Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti has raised $437,775, most of which comes from the Soros-linked Justice and Public Safety PAC.
Fairfax County Commonwealth attorney Steve Descano raised $208,468, including a contribution from the Soros-linked PAC.
Loudoun County Commonwealth attorney Buta Biberaj raised $163,838, though she did not receive any money from Soros.
George Soros, billionaire and founder of Soros Fund Management LLC, remains one of the most prominent financiers of political races across the country. (Simon Dawson/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Democrats also led fundraising efforts in the state legislature.
Democratic legislative candidates ended up with more cash, according to the nonprofit’s analysis of the campaign finance revelations, as they had a combined $2 million advantage in the Senate and a cash advantage of about $400,000 for House races.
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All of the top 10 legislative fundraisers were Democratic candidates, the nonprofit found.
Democrats have more than twice as many Senate nomination contests than Republicans next week, also adding to the discrepancy.
Monday’s reporting did not include fundraisers for committees such as Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia, only candidates seeking office to run for office on Election Day in November.
Contributions from committees such as Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia were not included in Monday’s reporting. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
The fundraiser isn’t entirely good news for the state’s Democrats, as it demonstrates some political strife as lucrative candidates try to oust seasoned incumbents.
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Virginia’s campaign finance law allows unrestricted contributions, including those from individuals, corporations, and interest groups.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
