Posted: Oct. 12, 2016; updated with federal reports: Oct. 15, 2016

TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN (FOR OFFICE)

By Celia Cohen
Grapevine Political Writer

Not that the financing is lopsided or anything, but John Carney has pulled in way over a million dollars more in the governor's race than Colin Bonini.

Is Delaware a Democratic state, or what?

Carney, the congressman who is the Democrats' candidate for governor, has collected about $1.4 million in campaign contributions. Bonini, the state senator who is running for the Republicans, took in close to $149,000.

"That's a little more than I have. It's just a zero or two. More like two or three zeroes," Bonini quipped.

It gets worse. Carney still has about $900,000 in his campaign account. Bonini had to put $60,000 of his own money into his operation.

It gets worse. Recent polling from the University of Delaware shows Carney with a virtually insurmountable advantage as the choice of 60 percent of likely voters, as compared to 28 percent for Bonini, and it takes money to move poll numbers.

The snapshot of the financial state of the campaign, now with about a month to go before Election Day, comes from a new round of campaign finance reports that were due as of Tuesday.

Collectively the reports show the Democrats' statewide ticket to be better off than the Republicans' slate, where the candidates on it were already the underdogs.

As in politics, as in life, the rich get richer.

Office Candidates Total Contributions Self-loans Total Balance

Governor

Carney (D)

Bonini (R)

$1.4 million

   $148,489

0

$60,000

$1.4 million

   $208,489

$907,988

  $83,589

U.S. House

Rochester (D)

Reigle (R)

  $804,333

  $177,799

$403,900

    $8,452

$1.2 million

  $186,251

$215,916

  $36,429

Lt. Governor

Hall-Long (D)

Gunn (R)

   $314,464

     $17,550

$35,000

0

$349,464

  $17,550

  $40,905

  $13,729

Ins Commissioner

Navarro (D)

Cragg (R)

  $110,720

      $9,450

  $5,000

  $3,712

$115,720

  $13,162

  $40,446

    $2,710

Source: Campaign finance reports

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