After a debate on Friday that had to change formats after Graham refused Harrison's request to take another COVID-19 test, news came out yesterday that Harrison raised a monster $57 million from July through September. It's the highest quarterly fundraising total for any Senate candidate in U.S. history.
Though Graham has yet to release his numbers from this quarter, according to the New York Times, Harrison's amount is more than double what Graham raised in the past six quarters combined. But it's important to note that most of those donations came from out-of-state, reflecting national anger toward Graham and his push to confirm Amy Coney Barrett's seat on the Supreme Court.
Money, as Beto O'Rourke knows, does not always equal victory. A Quinnipiac University poll from a few weeks ago has Graham and Harrison in a dead heat with each other. And, as AP notes, both candidates already have "wall-to-wall" online and air advertising, making it "hard to see where Harrison's cash could help him eke out more visibility." But all those fund$ gives Harrison's campaign the latitude to reach a lot of voters, telling AP that they will use "every dollar donated" in ads, digital organizing, and communication with Black voters.
Furthermore, Graham's heightened presence at the Supreme Court confirmation hearings could hurt him with voters who aren't keen on his hypocrisy going on full display right as the election season kicks into high gear. South Carolina's Senate race remains one to watch.
Sen. @LindseyGrahamSC: "This is an election year...Justice Ginsburg, when asked about this several years ago, said that a president serves for four years, not three. There's nothing unconstitutional about this process...the Senate is doing its duty constitutionally."#SCOTUS pic.twitter.com/98nGPinI6E
— CSPAN (@cspan) October 12, 2020
