Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego raised almost $22 million in the third quarter of fundraising as he seems to get closer to winning the Arizona Senate race, with donations of $100 or less representing 95% of the amount, his campaign announced.
The concrete figure is over $21.7 million raised between July and September, and 271,000 contributors during the period. His opponent, Republican Kari Lake, has not disclosed her fundraising figures but her campaign has until October 15 to do so.
"Arizonans know we need Ruben Gallego in the U.S. Senate, which is why over 437,000 small-dollar donors have chipped in to support the campaign," Gallego campaign manager Nichole Johnson said in a press release accompanying the figure. "Because of their generous support, we are going to defeat Kari Lake and send a Marine combat veteran with a lifetime of service to the Senate."
Gallego is ahead in all polls a little over a month from the elections. The latest survey features a smaller margin than the previous ones: conducted by AtlasIntel among 946 likely voters, it showed Gallego ahead by four percentage points, garnering 50% of the support compared to Lake's 46%.
It is a large departure from the previous survey, where Gallego led comfortably by a two-digit margin. The Beacon Research/Shaw & Company Research and Fox News poll, which consulted over 1,000 registered voters, concluded that the Democrat held 56% of the support compared to Lake's 42%.
Another study by the same entities among 764 likely voters had a similar result: Gallego got 55% of the potential votes, while lake took 42%. The Cook Political Report says the race is leaning Democrat.
Lake and Gallego will face each other next week, when they engage in a debate. The event will take place on October 9 and will be organized by the Arizona Clean Elections Commission.
The latest development in the race took place on Thursday, when Gallego got emotional after that his father is a convicted drug dealer, a revelation he made after his contender in the Senate race, Republican Kari Lake, sought to tie him with drug cartels.
Speaking to press at an event with mayors who support his candidacy, Gallego said: "She's raising it because my father, who abandoned my family, is a convicted drug dealer. and it's a stain my family has had to carry. and this is why my mom, my sisters and myself have worked our entire lives to live the American dream and to serve and honor the country despite what he has done."
"But this is who Kari Lake is. She attacks families when she's losing. Because she is, she is a pathetic loser. We've seen what happened with the McCain family. We've seen it happen with other families here," Gallego added. He went on to criticize the fact that "all it takes is craven politicians like Kari Lake to drag us all down" despite doing "everything right."
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