Bynum raises record-breaking $3.4 million, other Oregon Democrats outraise Republicans
Democratic congressional candidate Janelle Bynum speaks at a press conference on Oct. 2, 2024. (Julia Shumway/Oregon Capital Chronicle)
The Democratic challenger in Oregon's most closely contested congressional district raised more than three times as much as the Republican incumbent between June and September, federal campaign finance reports filed late Tuesday show.
Democratic incumbents in Oregon's other competitive districts also outraised their Republican challengers. Republican Mike Erickson, a millionaire who largely self-funded his previous campaigns, contributed little this time around.
State Rep. Janelle Bynum, D-Clackamas, raised nearly $3.4 million between June 1 and Sept. 30, while Republican incumbent Lori Chavez-DeRemer raised $1.1 million in the same timeframe.
Bynum's third quarter haul is the most ever raised in a single quarter by any Oregon congressional candidate and makes her one of the top-raising non-incumbents in the country.
"The Bynum campaign's record-breaking fundraising haul cements the campaign's momentum heading into the final stretch of this election," campaign manager Blakely Wall said. "It's abundantly clear that Oregonians are ready for a change in Washington, and Janelle Bynum is the leader who will deliver for this state. Janelle has the funds, momentum, and support to defeat Lori Chavez-DeRemer for a third time this November."
Their race for Oregon's 5th Congressional District, which stretches from Portland's suburbs across the Cascade range to Bend, is one of the tightest in the nation and could determine which party controls the U.S. House. Voters in the district have been bombarded with ads and mail — including one eye-popping photoshopped image of Bynum performing tricks on a skateboard that calls her "radical and extreme, but not in a good way" — for months.
Those messages will only heat up as candidates make their final pitch to voters, many of whom will begin receiving ballots in their mailboxes this week. Chavez-DeRemer started October with $1.6 million left to spend for this election and Bynum with $1.2 million. Both are also benefiting from millions in outside spending on their behalf.
"Congresswoman Chavez-DeRemer has enthusiasm, momentum and a significant cash-on-hand advantage entering the final weeks of this campaign," senior adviser Nick Trainer said. "Oregonians are seeing through Janelle Bynum's near decade of failure in Salem supporting rapists, rioters and tax hikes on working families. Oregonians will re-elect Lori Chavez-DeRemer to continue serving as a commonsense, solutions-oriented voice for them in Congress."
About $740,000 of Chavez-DeRemer's third-quarter haul came from individuals, with less than $200,000 in small contributions. That compares with about $3.2 million in individual contributions for Bynum in the third quarter from around the country, and almost $1 million were donations of $200 or less.
Other districts
First-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Andrea Salinas, running in the 6th Congressional District in the Willamette Valley, raised the second-most of any candidate in the third quarter, with nearly $1.5 million. She has more than $2.1 million left in her campaign bank account.
Her opponent, Erickson, collected a paltry $163,000 and has about $317,000 left. Erickson, a businessman who lost to Salinas by just more than 7,200 votes in 2022, is on his fourth run for Congress and has historically loaned his campaigns hundreds of thousands from his own personal fortune.
But he contributed no personal money to the campaign in the third quarter, and he has loaned his campaign just $31,000 this cycle.
In the 4th Congressional District, where first-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Val Hoyle faces a challenge from Republican veteran Monique DeSpain, Hoyle raised $730,000 to DeSpain's $232,000. Hoyle has about $822,000 left to spend, compared to $107,000 for DeSpain.
Ads in that district, which includes Eugene, Corvallis and most of the southern and central Oregon coast, are cheaper than in the Portland market.
Oregon's remaining congressional districts aren't competitive., Democratic incumbent Suzanne Bonamici in the 1st District stretching from Portland to the coast, Republican incumbent Cliff Bentz in the eastern Oregon 2nd District and Democratic state Rep. Maxine Dexter in the Portland-area 3rd District are expected to easily win their November elections. Bonamici raised about $152,000 and has $583,000 in the bank, Bentz raised almost $184,000 and has nearly $1.2 million in cash on hand and Dexter raised $243,000 and has almost $127,000 left.
