PORTLAND, Maine (AP) Democrat Sara Gideon raised $39 million for her Maine campaign in the third quarter, far outraising Republican Sen. Susan Collins in their heated race that could help determine control of the U.S. Senate.
Gideon filed a report Thursday with the Federal Election Commission indicating her campaign raised $39.3 million and spent $22 million in July, August and September, the Portland Press Herald reported.
Of the reported funds, $38.5 million came from individual donors, $260,000 came from party committees and political action committees, and $538,000 came from other authorized committees. Gideon reported having $22.7 million on hand at the end of September.
Collins, who is seeking her 5th term, reported raising $8 million in the same quarter and ended it with $6.6 million left to spend. She reported about $7.4 million contributed from individuals, $320,000 from party committees and political action committees, and $581,000 from other political committees.
The Collins campaign had received $25.2 million in contributions by the end of September, less than half of Gideon’s $62 million in total fundraising so far.
Political action committees have spent $71 million to support or oppose Gideon and Collins, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan organization that monitors political spending. Nearly $58 million of the money spent was used for negative advertisements against the candidates in the hotly contested race.
