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State of Democracy's coverage of campaign finance and the role money is playing in the 2016 New Hampshire primary and beyond.0000017a-15d9-d736-a57f-17ff8ee60000

Shaheen Leads Fundraising Pack In Race For U.S. Senate

As expected, Democratic incumbent Jeanne Shaheen and Republican candidate Scott Brown have shown they will have very little trouble raising money in their race for the U.S. Senate.

Shaheen's campaign announced Monday she raised more than $2.8 million for her re-election campaign between April 1 and June 30 of this year, more than double the amount she collected from supporters in the previous two quarters combined.

Shaheen has raised more than $10 million overall since 2009, according to the campaign and Federal Election Commission filings, and she has more than $5.1 million in cash with four months to go before the general election.

That gives the incumbent a considerable cash advantage over Brown, the former Massachusetts senator who Democrats believe will be  Shaheen’s likely opponent in November. 

Brown, who must get past former U.S. Sen. Bob Smith and former state Sen. Jim Rubens in the primary for the right to face Shaheen, raised at least $2 million between April 1 and June 30, according to his campaign. 

Rubens, meanwhile, raised $22,085 in the second quarter, according to his campaign, which shared the candidate’s full FEC filing. Rubens also loaned his campaign $253,600 in personal funds, raising his overall investment in the race to more than $506,000.

Two months before the September 9 primary, Rubens reports having more than $414,000 on hand.

Smith has not yet released any fundraising figures.

At the start of the second quarter, Shaheen had more than $4.3 million on hand, after raising $1.53 million between January 1 and March 31 and about $1.1 million in the final quarter of 2013.

She began the year with $3.4 million in the bank, compared to the roughly $300,000 Brown had when he entered the race in April. Brown’s campaign declined to share the candidate’s current cash position.

Shaheen has used Brown’s past fundraising prowess in a relentless press for donations from supporters.

On June 30, the final day of the quarter, separate email pitches for cash included references to Mitt Romney, who has endorsed Brown; the Koch brothers, whose nonprofit arm, American for Prosperity has vowed to spend millions to help Republicans regain control of the Senate; and the recent Hobby Lobby decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. 

In 2012, Brown raised $28 million, including almost $5 million in the second quarter of that election year. Brown eventually lost to Elizabeth Warren, who has helped raise money for Shaheen and her joint political committee, the Shaheen Victory Fund 2014.

Meanwhile, according to the Shaheen campaign, outside groups, led by Americans for Prosperity, have spent well over $2 million on anti-Shaheen attack ads.

On the other side, the Senate Majority PAC has dropped more than $650,000 attacking Brown, and the League of Conservation Voters has spent another $400,000 on ads.

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