Graves raises $1 million against Bachmann, lends self $270,000
WASHINGTON - Hotel owner Jim Graves went deeper into his very deep pockets to fund his campaign against Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, according to federal campaign finance reports.
They show that Graves, a Democrat, drew almost $669,000 from donors between late July and Sept. 30 and he contributed an additional $270,000 for his effort to unseat Bachmann, who's running for a fourth term. Graves had previously lent his campaign $250,000. His campaign has more than $614,000 cash in the bank, compared to Bachmann's $3.5 million.
Graves received more in donations than every other U.S. House incumbent in Minnesota aside from Bachmann, who raised $4.5 million in the most recent quarter.
On Monday, national Democrats upgraded the 6th District contest, saying that Bachmann was potentially beatable.
That news was tempered by the first independent poll in the race, commissioned by KSTP, which showed Bachmann leading Graves 50 percent to 41 percent among 598 likely voters in the district. The survey has a 4.1 percent margin of error, which means that Bachmann holds a slim lead even if her support is at the low end of the margin and Graves' is at the high end.
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