If
he were to decide to take a run at the U.S. Senate, current U.S. Representative
Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) would have a fundraising edge on most, assuming he
would transfer funds from his House account. Mr. Upton is reportedly still
considering a run for the U.S. Senate, a campaign for which former Secretary of
State Terri Lynn Land remains the only declared GOP candidate.
Raising
nearly $453,000 in the most recent quarter, Mr. Upton has $719,784 in cash
on-hand, having raised a total of more than $930,000 in the election cycle.
Another
yet-to-decide potential GOP U.S. Senate candidate, Congressman Justin Amash,
has $164,419 in cash on-hand after raising just shy of $215,000 in the current
quarter and $348,046 for the cycle.
One
of the most likely targets in the 2014 election, Congressman Dan Benishek
(R-Crystal Falls), raised almost $200,000 in the recent quarter, bringing his
total raised to $367,860 for the cycle and $259,869 cash on-hand. Mr. Benishek
also has almost $95,000 in remaining debt.
Perhaps
most interesting is the fundraising efforts of freshman Congressman Kerry
Bentivolio (R-Milford) who raised only $71,198 for the quarter between his two
funds. One of his two funds still carries nearly $112,000 in debt. Although no
candidates have officially declared this early to challenge Mr. Bentivolio, the
numbers show that Michigan’s wealthiest county, Oakland, may be up for grabs –
at least financially.