In Michigan's 3rd Congressional District, the sole Democrat in the race reported raising more money in the second quarter than the five Republicans also competing to unseat incumbent Rep. Justin Amash.
Hillary Scholten, an immigration attorney from Grand Rapids, raised $484,968 in this quarter and reported having $524,577 cash on hand, more than the Republicans in the race. Scholten does not face a primary challenger. Her campaign reports raising about $936,000 since the start of the race.
There are five Republicans competing in the Aug. 4 primary.
State Rep. Lynn Afendoulis of Grand Rapids reported raising $394,873 this quarter--which includes a $200,000 loan from the candidate. Her campaign has $227,412 cash on hand. Afendoulis has reported raising nearly $857,000 since the start of the campaign.
Peter Meijer, great-grandson of the grocery store chain founder and a veteran, reported raising $373,768 in this quarter. The campaign's cash on hand is nearly $450,000. Meijer has loaned the campaign $425,000 since the beginning of the race, including $100,000 this quarter. Since the start of his campaign, Meijer has reported raising about $1.4 million.
Tom Norton, a veteran and former Sand Lake Village president, raised just over $6,300 from April to June. His campaign reported spending $5,711 during the quarter to end with $1,624 cash on hand.
Emily Rafi, a Battle Creek based attorney, reported a sole contribution of $11,818 from the candidate, which was also spent this quarter.
There were no filings for Joe Farrington, a bar owner and Lyons Village trustee.
The district is currently represented by Amash, a former Republican turned Independent and now Libertarian who dabbled with the idea of running for president. His congressional campaign was suspended in February when he started exploring the idea of the presidency. However, after determining "circumstances don’t lend themselves to my success," Amash ended his potential candidacy for president. His campaign said his congressional re-election campaign remains paused.
The Amash congressional campaign reported raising just over $24,000. After strong fundraising efforts at the end of 2019, the campaign reports $606,512 cash on hand.
The fundraising quarter runs from April 1 to June 30.
Michigan's 3rd Congressional District has been represented by Amash since 2011. The district includes the Grand Rapids region, Ionia, Barry and Calhoun counties.
More stories on 13 ON YOUR SIDE:
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.
