Harmon's Cash Haul Towers Over Legislative Leaders
Senate President Don Harmon.
Senate President Don Harmon continues to rake in campaign dollars, dwarfing his Republican competition and even many statewide campaigns.
In first quarter campaign finance reports disclosed by midnight last night, Harmon, a Democrat from Oak Park, raised around $2 million in his personal account, spent around $2.6 million (most of which was accounted for in a $2 million transfer to the Senate Democrats campaign arm), and finished the primary season with $19.1 million cash on hand.
ISDF, the Senate Dems campaign account, finished the quarter with $2.5 million cash on hand, leaving Harmon with control of around $21.6 million ahead of the General Election cycle. Democrats are targeting multiple Republican-held seats and looking to defend two Democrats, Sen. Doris Turner (D-Springfield) and Sen. Mike Halpin (D-Rock Island).
“He’s an absolute machine,” one Democratic consultant told The Illinoize Wednesday. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Senate Republican Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove) raised $153,000 in the first quarter of the year and had around $3 million cash on hand at the end of March. The Senate Republican Victory Fund had around $320,000 on hand, giving Curran about $3.2 million cash for the fall campaign.
