July 01, 2013 11:27 AM UTC

Udall Banks $1.3 Million In Q2

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• by: Colorado Pols

Colorado Sen. Mark Udall had perhaps his best month of press since taking office in June, when a government surveillance scandal he’s long hinted at came to light.

The Democrat, who faces reelection next fall, also finished up another strong fundraising quarter, bringing in $1.3 million in contributions between April 1 and June 30.

Udall’s campaign now has $3.4 million cash on hand, his campaign tells FOX31 Denver.

Now he just needs an opponent…

Stokols reports that one of the more consistent mentions as a possible opponent to Sen. Mark Udall in 2014, failed 2006 gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez, is in decline as a likely candidate, and mentions three state legislators, including former Majority Leader Amy Stephens and freshman state Sen. Owen Hill of Colorado Springs. We were the first to report the possibility of a Stephens run, and Stokols says of Owen Hill:

Keep an eye on Hill, who has just one year under his belt as a lawmaker but has impressed political observers at the Capitol with his speaking prowess; just in his early 30s with a young family, Hill is exactly the kind of fresh face the Colorado GOP is looking for…

…That his name is even in the mix to challenge Udall this cycle underlines his potential — and just how short the Republican bench is in the state. [Pols emphasis]

As eloquent as Hill may be–we find him a bit hammy–this has every appearance of the search for a placeholder. We won't argue that Hill may have the makings of a bright political future (mainly because he just got elected) but the mention of his name for U.S. Senate is entirely about circumstance and timing. The only reason Hill's name has even made it into discussion is because the GOP really has nobody on their bench; that's Hill's good fortune, perhaps, but you can't extract further meaning from the correlation.