July 18, 2017 10:06 AM UTC

Cary Kennedy Shuts Down The Critics

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• by: Colorado Pols

A press release yesterday from Democratic gubernatorial candidate Cary Kennedy announces the most important thing she needed to stay relevant in a changing primary landscape–a big fat pile of money:

Cary Kennedy, Democratic candidate for Governor of Colorado, today announced raising $343,000 dollars in the first financial quarter of her campaign for governor. Ninety-two percent of contributors to Cary’s campaign reside within Colorado; the campaign received contributions from 34 of Colorado’s counties. Kennedy is building a grassroots campaign with 1,705 donations, more than half of which were under $100.

“I am honored to have the support of so many Coloradans across our state,” said Kennedy. “Thank you to all of my supporters. Together we will work to make sure every Coloradan benefits from the progress we’ve made.”

Kennedy’s campaign has gained momentum as she engages her supporters across the state and it’s clear her statewide base is continuing to grow. Notably she was endorsed by EMILY’s List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics. If elected, Cary will be the first woman to serve as Colorado’s governor.

Cary Kennedy spent the first months of her campaign traveling across Colorado and connecting with voters. For example, she marched for science in Mesa county, helped build a trail in El Paso, met with voters in Grand County, paraded for Memorial Day in Adams county, toasted with supporters in Larimer and celebrated Cinco de Mayo, Pride and Juneteenth in Denver.

Cary Kennedy endured some ribbing after a campaign launch stunt that local news media spent an undue amount of time and energy deconstructing–so much so that we suspect it motivated her supporters to make a strong showing in a way nobody can ignore, Kennedy’s bottom line. Kennedy handily outraised Democratic opponent Mike Johnston, who was unable to sustain his huge first-quarter haul from out-of-state education reform interests. With the departure of Ed Perlmutter from the race, a window has opened for competitiveness with now-presumed frontrunner Jared Polis that Kennedy is well-equipped to exploit.

And really, hats off to Kennedy and her team. They did exactly what they needed to do to be taken seriously in this race.