Democrat J.D. Scholten’s campaign confirmed that it raised $900,000 this week in its bid to unseat three-term incumbent Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa).
Scholten’s campaign told The Hill that the massive haul came from more than 30,000 individual donors since Monday night.
“It’s important to note that we’d already outraised King 2-to-1 for the entire election cycle before this recent surge. An independent poll came out late Monday night showing we were within one point. At the same time, Steve King started doing what Steve King does best — embarrassing this district by making headlines for all the wrong reasons,” Scholten deputy campaign manager Todd Prieb said in a statement to The Hill.
{mosads}“The poll, coupled with J.D.’s incredible work ethic and non-stop campaigning, have given people hope that we can win this thing. One thing is clear, this seat is absolutely in play,” he added.
King has faced mounting criticism over his endorsement of a white nationalist candidate in Canada and comments that appeared to support the far-right Austria Freedom Party, which has historical ties to the Nazi party.
Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio), chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, blasted King’s comments and actions this week, tweeting, “Congressman Steve King’s recent comments, actions, and retweets are completely inappropriate. We must stand up against white supremacy and hate in all forms, and I strongly condemn this behavior.”
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) said Friday that he is supporting Scholten in his bid to unseat King over King’s ties with white nationalist politicians and groups.
“We have a candidate on our side of the aisle who isn’t exactly making things easy for Republicans moving forward. It’s not the best face of the party,” Flake said on CNN’s “The Situation Room.”
A number of companies, including tech giant Intel Corp., AT&T and dairy company Land O’Lakes, have announced in recent days that they will no longer contribute to King’s campaign.
A poll released Tuesday showed King ahead of his Democratic opponent by just 1 point. The Cook Political Report also shifted the race from “Likely Republican” to “Lean Republican” in a district President Trump won by 27 points in 2016.