The 2024 elections are only getting closer, and now, early campaign fundraising data shows Democratic contender Lucas Kunce, who is hoping to unseat incumbent Republican Senator Josh Hawley, far outpacing his prospective GOP challenger.
The two are running in Missouri. Hawley has become known in part for his role in January 6, having been among the first Republicans in either chamber of Congress to support the idea of opposing the certification in Congress of the entirety of Biden’s electoral college win as duly established in the individual states. Kunce raised $1,129,822.65 in total contributions from individuals throughout the first quarter of 2023, while Hawley’s total was just $309,712.56, representing a very large difference.
As could be expected considering Hawley’s longer stint in Senate politics, though, the Republican did end the quarter with more cash on hand, meaning available funds. Hawley’s total was about $4 million, while Kunce was at about $700,000, reflecting the respective campaigns’ resources from which they can draw for the contest moving forward.
The totals are the fundraising amounts at their principal campaign committees and drawn from numbers available via the Federal Election Commission, a federal agency. Hawley’s campaign total was slightly higher when adding categories like transfers from other authorized committees, where he got just $25,000, but he was still behind Kunce’s total for the fundraising quarter. More of Hawley’s donations for the quarter in the individuals category seem to have come from individuals who’d passed $200 either cumulatively or just with an individual donation, as the portion of Hawley’s fundraising that was itemized was higher than the portion left unitemized, which reflects that distinction. The reverse was true of Kunce’s numbers, meaning more donors hadn’t yet reached the level where more information needed to be provided under the relevant federal rules.
The last time Missouri had a Democratic Senator actually wasn’t that long ago. Hawley took office in 2019, replacing Claire McCaskill, who’d won two successive elections. Other Democratic stints representing the state in the U.S. Senate include a brief period in the early 2000s and back in the ’80s and prior, when modern political alignments were just taking shape. Other high-profile Senate races around the country in the 2024 elections will include contests in Arizona, Michigan, Montana, and California — although that last race will probably be more about which Democrat will succeed Dianne Feinstein rather than a competitive race between the two major political parties.
