WV-Gov: Quarterly campaign finance reports were due on Tuesday, and each of the three notable Democratic contenders ended 2019 with more money than any of the GOP candidates.
The top fundraiser in the May Democratic primary was Kanawha County Commissioner Ben Salango, who entered the race in October. Salango raised $382,000 from donors and self-funded an additional $500,000, and he ended the year with $808,000 on-hand.
State Sen. Ron Stollings, who launched his campaign in late September, raised $147,000 during this time. Stollings transferred another $22,000 from his legislative campaign account and self-funded an additional $20,000, and he had $158,000 to spend. Community organizer Stephen Smith, who has been running for about a year, raised $121,000 and had $168,000 in the bank. Both Salango and Stollings describe themselves as moderates, while Smith is appealing to progressive voters.
On the GOP side, Gov. Jim Justice raised $410,000 and self-funded an additional $55,000. Justice burned through most of that money before the end of the year, though, and he had just $67,000 on-hand.
Former state Secretary of Commerce Woody Thrasher, who is Justice’s main primary rival, took in just $52,000 from donors but self-funded a big $917,000 for the quarter. Like Justice, though, Thrasher spent most of this cash, though he ended December with a larger $106,000 war chest. Former Del. Mike Folk was far behind with $18,000 raised and an additional $10,000 self-funded, and he had $31,000 in the bank.