New Report: Arizona GOP Governor Doug Ducey “Crushing” His Potential Opponents In Fundraising, In Strong Position For Re-Election

With GOP Governor Doug Ducey delivering on his promises to grow Arizona’s economy and drive job-growth, Democrats are struggling to field a top-tier challenger in the race for governor. Recent fundraising reports show that Ducey is “crushing his potential opponents” and has “10 times the amount of money on-hand compared to his best-funded Democratic rival.” With a weak field of candidates and poor fundraising numbers by Democrats, Governor Ducey is in a strong position for re-election.

The Arizona Republic reports,

The first look at money raised by candidates who want to be Arizona’s next governor shows a clear winner: Gov. Doug Ducey. So far, he is crushing his potential opponents in the fundraising portion of the 2018 race.

In the newest campaign-finance reports, Ducey raised more than $2.8 million, and has 10 times the amount of money on-hand compared to his best-funded Democratic rival.

The reports, filed with the Secretary of State on Friday,cover the period of Nov. 9, 2016, to Dec. 31, 2017, and give the first indication of the statewide fundraising prowess of Democrats compared to Ducey, a prolific money raiser.

Candidates’ capacity to raise money last quarter is a key barometer for the success of a campaign. The primary election is Aug. 28. The general election is Nov. 6.

… Jennifer Duffy, a senior editor for the influential and nonpartisan Cook Political Report in Washington, D.C., said the political environment for Republicans nationwide appears unfriendly, but she doesn’t know if that will matter in Arizona.

“I don’t necessarily see a candidate on the Democratic side with the juice to do it,” she said.

…The Cook Political Report rated the governor’s race winner as “Likely Republican.”