Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Senator Ross Jump Starts Campaign By Raising $400,000 In Three Weeks

Raising money has been no problem for State Sen. Mike Ross of late.

Since announcing his intention to seek the office of Fourth Congressional District House of Representatives, taking on incumbent Congressman Jay Dickey, Ross has raised $140,000.

This, according to a release from the Ross for Congress campaign, is the most money ever reported by a non-incumbent during the first six months of an off-year election.

Ross formally announced his plans on June 7, for the year 2000 general election.

The Federal Election Commission requires candidates to file a report covering the contributions and expenditures for the period January through June of off-election years. But, Ross's report covers a scant three-week period, as he didn't become a candidate until early June.

"A non-incumbent in the Fourth Congressional District has never come close to reporting $140,000 during the first six months of an off-election year," Erik Greathouse, financial director of the Ross campaign, said. "Sen. Ross was successful in setting a new record in the three weeks between when he announced his candidacy on June 7, and the FEC's reporting cut-off date of June 30.

"Sen. Ross' ability to break previous six-month fundraising records in three short weeks demonstrates he can win the democratic nomination and defeat Republican Congressman Jay Dickey in next year's general election. Ross was successful in securing more than $140,000 during a time when it is difficult to raise campaign funds a year before the Democratic Primary Election and when nearly a dozen other Democrats were considering the race. While this will be a very long and expensive campaign, Ross has proven he can raise the campaign funds necessary to win the primary and general election," Greathouse concluded.

"I took our campaign directly to the people of the Fourth Congressional District," Ross said, "and they responded by making contributions, volunteering and becoming actively involved in our campaign.

"My family and I are grateful to the hundreds of people in the district for the financial support they have provided our campaign. They have made it clear they support our candidacy by opening their pocketbooks and contributing to our campaign. With the help of generous people throughout our congressional district, we have proven we have the grass roots support to win this election and defeat Congressman Dickey."

A total of 473 people contributed to Ross's campaign between June 7-30. The average contribution was $269, with 90 percent of the funds coming from Arkansas residents. Additionally, 65 percent of the contributions came from individuals who reside in the Fourth Congressional District.