Former U.S. Rep. Ed Case said Tuesday that he raised $138,000 in the past three months for his Democratic primary campaign for U.S. Senate, the latest indicator that he continues to struggle to attract financial support for his moderate political message.
Case’s quarterly fundraising places him far behind U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono, his primary opponent, who raised more than $1 million in that period. Case has brought in more than $600,000 in total for his campaign, compared with $2.5 million for Hirono. Former Gov. Linda Lingle, the leading Republican candidate, raised $1.3 million in the past quarter and $3.1 million overall.
"We were never going to win the money race because we’re not hooked into the D.C. special interest money," Case said in a text message. "This election isn’t about who can raise the most money; that’s the problem to start with. It’s about who can fix D.C. and provide leadership to overcome our challenges.
"I’ve taken my campaign to do just that directly and personally to voters as I’ve always done."
Case has had trouble with fundraising in previous campaigns, and expected to trail Hirono and Lingle, but his quarterly figures are well below what candidates in lower-profile campaigns are raising. For example, former Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann raised $250,000 and Honolulu City Councilwoman Tulsi Gabbard collected $213,000 in the past quarter for their Democratic primary in the 2nd Congressional District, which covers rural Oahu and the neighbor islands.
Both Case and Hirono have high name recognition with voters, and the primary should receive extensive coverage by the news media, factors that can help offset Case’s fundraising disadvantage.
Case has been a believer in grass-roots campaigning through "talk story" events with voters. He has also been pressing Hirono for debates, where he would have the ability to challenge Hirono directly and attempt to minimize the impact of the congresswoman’s paid advertising.
"We hope that Mazie emerges from hiding and engages me publicly in the months remaining on the issues voters care about, like fixing D.C., growing our economy and balancing our budget," Case said in an email.
Dan Boylan, a political analyst and retired history professor at the University of Hawaii at West Oahu, said Case has always been a "shoe leather and handshake candidate."
He said Democrats will ensure that the winner of the primary in August will have enough money to compete against Lingle in November. He also questioned whether political analysts put too much emphasis on fundraising.
"I think we’ve reached the point where we’re handicapping these people basically on how much they bring in, and that’s not entirely fair," Boylan said.
