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Joe O'Dea contributes half of $2 million Q2 fundraising haul [1]

['Alayna Treene', 'Authors Atreene']

Date: 2022-07-12

Joe O'Dea, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in Colorado, raised roughly $2 million in the second quarter of 2022 — $1 million of which he personally contributed, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: The political newcomer's self-funding is keeping his race competitive against Democratic incumbent Michael Bennet. The question is whether a broader stable of Republican donors will get on board with O'Dea in order to flip the seat, Axios Denver's John Franks notes.

His campaign now has roughly $840,000 on hand as it gears up for the general election.

The big picture: Democratic groups spent around $10 million in an effort to boost O'Dea's far-right primary challenger Ron Hanks — painting O'Dea as GOP-lite in comparison — in the hopes of giving Bennet a weaker nominee to run against in November.

But despite those efforts, O'Dea, the CEO of a Colorado construction company and a first-time candidate for office, won his primary last month.

Now some Democrats worry they may have helped strengthen the rival they feared.

Between the lines: Bennet isn't among the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents. Senate Republicans' campaign arm, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, is still hyper-focused on battleground races in Georgia, Nevada, Arizona and New Hampshire.

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[1] Url: https://www.axios.com/2022/07/12/joe-odea-colorado-republican-senate

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