Heitkamp raises $1.6 million for reelection bid: report

Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) raised $1.6 million in the first quarter of 2017 as she gears up for what is expected to be a fierce and highly contested reelection bid next year, Politico reported Wednesday.

Heitkamp is expected to enter the second quarter — April through June — with more than $2 million cash on hand. What’s more, the $1.6 million raised in the first three months of 2017 marks the largest haul of any other North Dakota senatorial contender in the first quarter of a nonelection year, according to Politico.

By comparison, the news outlet noted that Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) raised $1.3M during the first quarter of his first Senate run in 2010.ˇ

President Trump won North Dakota by more than 100,000 votes in November, making Heitkamp’s seat a prime target for Republicans looking to expand their Senate majority in the 2018 midterms. 

{mosads}Heitkamp has not officially declared whether she will run for reelection, though she is expected to. She does not yet have a Republican challenger, but Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) has been a rumored pick. Politico reported that he met with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) late last year to discuss a challenge to Heitkamp.

Heitkamp is among a handful of Senate Democrats facing reelection bids in states Trump won by large margins. Among them are Sens. Joe Manchin (W.Va.), Joe Donnelly (Ind.) and Claire McCaskill (Mo.).