July 07, 2010 06:25 PM UTC

Where's the Money to Match That Mouth?

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• by: Colorado Pols

The Fort Collins Coloradoan’s Bob Moore reports, as seems to be the case everywhere we look, voter enthusiasm for GOP candidates in this “wave year” isn’t being matched at the bottom line:

Larimer County Democratic candidates for the state Legislature generally are outraising their Republican opponents this year, even in races that feature GOP incumbents, according to the latest campaign finance reports filed with the secretary of state Tuesday…

In the Senate District 15 race, Democrat Richard Ball has outraised Republican incumbent Kevin Lundberg, $30,000 to $27,000, though Lundberg has a bit more cash on hand. Another Democratic candidate, Torsten Eckstein, hasn’t reported raising any money…

In House District 52, Democrat John Kefalas’ June report wasn’t available late Tuesday, but he’d raised $37,000 by the end of May and banked $24,000 of that. Republicans won’t even have a candidate until a July 12 vacancy committee meeting…

Moore’s right to point out that, for example in Kevin Lundberg’s case, we’re talking about solid red territory where Democrats would already be facing long odds. At the same time, as evidence continues to build of poor candidate recruitment, and inept campaign organizations, as a major stumbling block to GOP aspirations in the legislature this election, the basic principles for winning elections–field quality candidates, outraise opponents–still matter, even in the wave years.