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Colin Allred, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, raised $4.7 million in the third quarter, according to fundraising figures first shared with The Texas Tribune.
Allred, a Dallas congressman, is among several Democrats vying to challenge U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who is seeking a third term next year.
Cruz’s campaign told Fox News on Monday that he raised $5.4 million in the third quarter, though that was a combined total of money he raised into three separate accounts. A direct comparison of money raised by Cruz and Allred’s respective campaign committees will not be available until the candidates file their third-quarter report, due Sunday.
According to Allred’s campaign, he has received “almost” 150,000 individual donors since launching his campaign in May. In the third quarter, his average contribution amounted to $29.83, with 95% of donations falling below $100.
In a statement, Paige Hutchinson, campaign manager for Colin Allred, expressed how the Texans’ fervor to replace Ted Cruz with Colin Allred in the Senate is evident in the incredible surge of grassroots support witnessed this quarter.
Allred joined the race in May and managed to accumulate $6.2 million in funds until the end of the second quarter, which concluded on June 30. During this three-month duration, he outperformed Cruz, who secured $3.4 million for his campaign committee.
During the second quarter, Allred transferred $2.4 million from his House campaign account. In the latest quarter, he made a significantly smaller transfer of approximately $60,000.
At the conclusion of the third quarter, both Allred and Cruz have refrained from disclosing the specific amount of cash available in their respective campaign accounts.
According to Cruz’s campaign, he currently holds over $6.7 million in cash across three committees. These committees include Ted Cruz for Senate, his campaign committee; Ted Cruz Victory Committee, a joint fundraising committee; and Jobs, Freedom & Security PAC, a leadership political action committee. Leadership PACs are commonly utilized by influential politicians to raise funds for supporting other candidates, as they are not permitted to use the funds directly for their own campaign endeavors.
Cruz ended the second quarter with $4.8 million in cash available in his campaign account, whereas Allred had $5.7 million.
Allred is one of at least eight Democrats running for the chance to face Cruz. The field also includes state Sen. Roland Gutierrez of San Antonio, state Rep. Carl Sherman of DeSoto and former Nueces County District Attorney Mark Gonzalez.
Ahead of the Sunday deadline to report fundraising numbers to the Federal Election Commission, none of the remaining Democrats have chosen to release their financial figures voluntarily.
