Oct. 15--Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth raised more campaign cash during the third quarter of the year than the Republican she is targeting in 2016, Sen. Mark Kirk, according to figures released Wednesday by their campaigns.
Duckworth raised $1.46 million during the three months ending Sept. 30, and Kirk raised $1.05 million. Kirk had more cash on hand -- $3.6 million to her $2.8 million -- at the end of the reporting period, the campaigns said.
Kirk's larger campaign treasury is not unexpected because he has been running for re-election since his first Senate win in 2010; Duckworth announced in March her bid for the Democratic nomination to challenge Kirk.
Andrea Zopp, another Democratic hopeful for the seat, raised about $425,000 in the quarter, leaving about $816,000 in her treasury, her campaign said.
The candidates must file campaign-finance reports Thursday.
Kirk, 56, from Highland Park, served nearly 10 years in the House before winning the Senate seat. Duckworth, 47, from Hoffman Estates, first was elected to the House in 2012 after losing a House race in 2006.
Zopp, 58, from Chicago, is a former prosecutor, former member of the Chicago Board of Education and former Chicago Urban League chief.
The U.S. Senate contest in Illinois is expected to be one of the country's most-watched races. Republicans hold 54 seats in the Senate and control of the chamber is at stake in a presidential election year. Kirk, who suffered a massive stroke in 2012, is up against the fact that Illinois last favored a Republican candidate for the White House in 1988.
The campaigns, while not releasing their full-length reports to the Federal Election Commission, tried to put the best spin on their latest rounds of fundraising.
Kirk touted his larger war chest and noted 1,455 first-time donors during the past three-month period. Duckworth said her campaign received nearly 18,700 individual contributions during the period, nearly 94.5 percent of them for amounts of $100 or less.
Bryce Colquitt, Zopp's campaign manager, said the candidate had raised $1.1 million since she entered the race more than three months ago.
"We're hitting our benchmarks and raising the money we need to win. We're confident that our grass-roots campaign will make the difference in this election."
With Kirk's new totals, he has raised more than $6.5 million since his last win. Duckworth now has raised more than $3.1 million since her 2014 re-election to the House, her campaign said.
The Illinois primary election for the Senate nomination is March 15.
kskiba@tribpub.com
