Hickenlooper raises $2.1 million in first five weeks of Senate campaign

Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper’s (D) campaign announced on Tuesday that he raised $2.1 million in the first five weeks of his Senate campaign, nearly double what he raised in the second quarter as a presidential candidate.

The campaign said over 21,000 people contributed, and that the average contribution was $26. The campaign ended the third quarter with $1.7 million cash on hand. 

{mosads}Additionally, Hickenlooper received no corporate PAC money, according to the campaign. 

The disclosure comes over a month after Hickenlooper ended his 2020 presidential campaign, and launched a bid for Colorado’s Senate seat against vulnerable Republican Sen. Cory Gardner. 

The Cook Political Report currently rates the Colorado Senate race as a “toss up.”

Hickenlooper failed to gain traction on the presidential campaign trail, causing him to lag in the polls and in fundraising, bringing in just $1.1 million in the second fundraising quarter earlier this year. 

Democrats urged Hickenlooper to jump into the Senate race, where he is seen as a potentially formidable challenger to Gardner due to his name recognition in the state. 

An Emerson College poll released in August showed Hickenlooper leading Gardner by 7 points in a hypothetical match-up. 

The former governor will first have to get through a crowded Democratic Senate primary, which already includes roughly a dozen candidates.