This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Rep. Mia Love reasserted her fundraising dominance in the early months of 2016, while her challenger Doug Owens sought to keep pace with the help of congressional Democrats.
The new reports show that Love, R-Utah, raised $612,000 since the beginning of the year and Owens brought in $394,600. The campaigns in Utah's 4th Congressional District are stockpiling cash for a big advertising push that is expected to begin in late summer.
The lopsided fundraising results come after Owens actually outraised the incumbent for the first time in the fourth quarter of 2015. Love campaign strategist Dave Hansen said that was an aberration driven by a heavy congressional workload.
"It was simply that she didn't have a chance to make as many phone calls as possible," said Hansen. "Consequently, we wanted to push it harder."
Love has regularly raised funds through online and mail solicitations, some of which are tied to her historic status as the first black Republican woman in Congress. Hansen said the campaign saw upticks in these areas, but also through direct calls and from political action committees.
As a member of the Financial Services Committee, Love has seen increased contributions from banks, credit unions and Wall Street firms.
She now has $1,087,600 in available funds.
Owens, who is a lawyer and the son of the late Rep. Wayne Owens, D-Utah, has $766,100 in the bank. This is his second race against Love. Underfunded and little known, he still claimed nearly 46 percent of the vote in 2014. Now with more money, and more support from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), Owens hopes to become a more widely known figure and to confront Love earlier in the campaign.
"This support will help Doug share his message of putting Utah first with voters throughout the 4th District," said Owens campaign strategist Taylor Morgan.
The DCCC has named the Love-Owens race as part of its "Red to Blue" program; since then, he's picked up more than $32,000 from sitting Democratic lawmakers. That includes $2,000 from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and $7,000 from House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer.
Other campaign reports identify two congressional challengers who are largely self-funding their race at this point. In the 2nd Congressional District, Democrat Charlene Albarran has put in $200,000 of her own money and since the beginning of January raised an additional $23,900. She is running against Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, in the race that includes Salt Lake City, part of Davis County and western Utah, south to the Arizona line. Albarran has moved into an apartment in Salt Lake City while keeping her house in Park City. Stewart, who is seeking a third term, raised $109,800 and now has $270,100 in available cash.
In the 3rd Congressional District, Republican challenger Chia-Chi Teng, an information technology professor at Brigham Young University, has loaned his campaign $227,000. He's challenging Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, who has $544,400 at his disposal after spending $40,000 more than he raised so far this year. Teng has spent $86,000 to collect the necessary 7,000 signatures to guarantee him a spot on the primary ballot.
Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, whose 1st Congressional District seat encompasses most of northern Utah and the Uinta Basin, raised $112,700 and now has $324,800 in available cash.