Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Top 10 Candidates on ActBlue, June 9-16, 2008

Editor's Note: Each week, ActBlue will release key statistics from campaigns across the country, along with brief biographical notes on the week's top 10 candidates*. When we have information that may help to explain why a candidate has had increased activity on ActBlue, we will provide it in italics below the biography. Descriptive content reproduced in the ActBlue Campaign Newswire is collated from publicly available sources. ActBlue does not take sides in any Democratic primary. You can subscribe to the RSS feed of the Campaign Newswire at http://feeds.feedburner.com/ActBlueCampaignNewswire.

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Mark Warner | VA-Sen | $47,166.00
Rick Noriega | TX-Sen | $37,240.05
Joseph Sestak, Jr. | PA-07 | $28,089.00
Kay Hagan | NC-Sen | $15,208.00
Sam Bennett | PA-15 | $13,415.66
Eric Massa | NY-29 | $10,397.68
Barack Obama | President | $10,150.91
Scott Harper | IL-13 | $9,965.00
Bob Lord | AZ-03 | $9,195.00
Tracey Brooks | NY-21 | $7,750.00

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Mark Warner (VA-Sen)

During his tenure as Virginia Governor from 2002-2006, Warner was hailed by Time Magazine as one of "America's 5 Best Governors" in 2005 and was featured in Newsweek's "Who's Next" issue in 2006. Warner is running for what will be Republican John Warner's vacated Senate seat.

Warner officially accepted his party's nomination for Senate on Saturday, June 14, at Virginia's Democratic Convention. Warner's high numbers follow key endorsements from two Virginia GOP leaders, and are undergirded by a steady cycle of recurring contributions.

Warner's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18420
Warner's campaign site http://markwarner2008.com/welcome


Rick Noriega (TX-Sen)

Noriega is certainly no newcomer to ActBlue success, and has been one of the top fundraisers on ActBlue this election cycle. After Noriega's Army tour in Afghanistan, the two-term Texas state representative and Lieutenant Colonel was appointed Incident Commander of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in Houston, Texas. He's now running against Republican incumbent John Cornyn for the Texas Senate seat.

Still a member of the National Guard, Noriega had to report for mandatory training the first two weeks of June. In response, his campaign launched an ActBlue fundraiser called "Fill Rick's Boots" [http://www.actblue.com/page/fillricksboots] to keep his supporters engaged during his absence from the campaign trail. Noriega's fundraising totals reflect several successful email blasts this week, and a push from campaign ally Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) [http://www.actblue.com/page/webb4noriega], who posted to the Noriega campaign blog in support of the "Fill Rick's Boots" effort on June 13.

Noriega's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18187
Noriega's campaign site http://www.ricknoriega.com/


Joseph Sestak Jr. (PA-07)

Former Navy Vice Admiral Joseph Sestak, Jr., was elected to Congress in 2006, defeating ten-term Republican incumbent Curt Weldon, and is running for re-election this year. Between tours, Sestak earned a master's degree in Public Administration and a Ph.D. in Political Economy and Government from Harvard, and later served as Director for Defense Policy on the staff of the National Security Council under President Clinton, and as director of "Deep Blue," the Navy's anti-terrorism unit. Sestak is the senior military veteran in Congress and the highest ranking former military officer ever elected to Congress. Sestak was among ActBlue's ten most successful candidates in 2006.

In the last week, Sestak has raised more than $28,000, with a median contribution of only $25, reflecting a broad-based fundraising push.

Sestak's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/12839
Sestak's campaign site http://www.sestakforcongress.com/


Kay Hagan (NC-Sen)

Hagan is running against Republican incumbent Elizabeth Dole and was recently named one of the "top ten most effective state senators" by the North Carolina Center for Public Policy Research (NCCPPR). In a lunch sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor in Washington, Sen. John Ensign listed the Hagan-Dole race as among the 10 most competitive races in the country. After winning the Democratic primary in May with 60 percent of the vote, the five-term North Carolina state senator continues to pick up high-profile endorsements.

Hagan's strong week reflects totals from an event with Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in partnership with EMILY's List, and fundraising pushes from, among others, the blogger SenateGuru [http://www.actblue.com/page/senate2008guru] and a group of North Carolina lawyers.

Hagan's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18560
Hagan's campaign site http://kayhagan.com/welcome


Sam Bennett (PA-15)

Siobhan "Sam" Bennett is challenging Bush Republican Charlie Dent for a congressional seat in Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District. The Allentown native spent 30 years working in her community, running a corporation and a nonprofit and contributing time and expertise to a number of community ventures, before deciding to run for office.

Bennett's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18008
Bennett's campaign site http://www.bennett2008.com/


Eric Massa (NY-29)

Naval veteran Eric Massa is a candidate for Congress from New York's 29th District. He is challenging Republican incumbent Randy Kuhl, for the second time. Massa is a vocal supporter of the "Responsible Plan for Iraq." [http://www.responsibleplan.com/]

Massa raised more than $10,000 this week on ActBlue, with a median donation of only $50.

Massa's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/17761
Massa's campaign site http://www.massaforcongress.com/index.asp


Barack Obama (President)

Illinois Senator Barack Obama is the presumptive Democratic nominee for President.

Obama's strong numbers on ActBlue reflect fundraising pushes from a number of directions, including networks of bloggers (Blue Majority; Daily Kos; Americablog.com; Atrios; TexansforObama.com; Balloon Juice), prominent Democrats (Senator Harry Reid; Senator John Kerry), and groups of local Democrats from all corners of the country (Brewer, ME Democratic City Committee; DugShop4Obama).

Obama's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/16332
Obama's campaign site http://www.barackobama.com


Scott Harper (IL-13)

Small business owner Scott Harper is running for Congress in the Illinois 13th against Republican incumbent Judy Biggert.

Harper recently hosted a fundraiser in Naperville, Illinois with the state treasurer. Harper's totals also reflect donations solicited through a successful email drive, wherein the candidate asked for $13 contributions, in reference to his congressional district.

Harper's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18402
Harper's campaign site http://www.scottharperforcongress.com/


Bob Lord (AZ-03)

Scottsdale attorney Bob Lord is a candidate for Congress in Arizona's Third District. Lord, the father of seven, lives in Phoenix, has been involved in a number of community initiatives, and has taught law at Arizona State. Lord is running against Representative John Shadegg (R-Phoenix).

Lord's successful fundraising week follows an effective targeted fundraising drive mounted by the campaign in response to a high-dollar fundraiser hosted by Senator John McCain for Lord's opponent John Shadegg. "People like you have put me where I am today, and I know I can count on you to keep me competitive no matter what favors John Shadegg calls in from his cronies," Lord writes on his ActBlue page. "This is John Shadegg hitting the panic button. Not even Shadegg interrupts a national campaign on an average day. We beat him in fundraising last quarter, so he is pulling every string to keep that from happening again. I need your help to stay with him at the upcoming June 30 deadline, so please contribute today!"

Lord's ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/16512
Lord's campaign site http://www.lord2008.com/


Tracey Brooks (NY-21)


Attorney Tracey Brooks is aiming to succeed Democratic Rep. Mike McNulty, who will retire next year after holding the congressional seat for 20 years. Brooks, a former program director at Catholic Charities who served on Senator Clinton's regional staff, is the only woman vying for the nomination, and it is projected that she will face at least seven other candidates in the state's September primary. Brooks was the Democratic nominee for the New York State Assembly, 108th District, in 2002, and came within three points of an upset victory over a ten-year Republican incumbent.

Brooks' ActBlue hubpage http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18816
Brooks' campaign site http://www.traceybrooks.com/


* All fundraising totals represent the amount raised from June 9 until 9 a.m. on June 16.

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