Crist among well-known candidates keeping first-quarter totals private

Several prominent 2010 candidates have yet to release their first-quarter
fundraising totals, prompting questions about how much they’ve banked.

Senate candidates Charlie Crist, the GOP governor of Florida; Alexi
Giannoulias, Illinois’s Democratic state treasurer; and California GOP Senate
candidate Carly Fiorina are all keeping their totals to themselves even as
their rivals boast of robust first-quarter tallies.

It’s possible all three are sitting on huge fundraising
numbers and are waiting to make a big media splash before April 15, the
deadline for submitting a report on first-quarter tallies to the Federal
Election Commission.

{mosads}But keeping quiet on the figures will also prompt
speculation that their campaigns haven’t equaled the donations of their
competitors.

“You’re in one of two positions,” said John Aristotle
Phillips, CEO of the Washington-based political consulting firm Aristotle. “One is you have the juice and you’re going to be able to
intimidate your opponent, and the other scenario is your fundraising has lagged
and you’re trying to do damage control.



“This is all about a head game on your opponents,” he said.

Crist’s primary opponent, former state House Speaker Marco Rubio (R), pulled in
$3.6 million in the first quarter — roughly the same amount raised by Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) combined.
Rubio, a conservative darling who appears to have the momentum in his challenge
against Crist, has trumpeted those numbers.

Crist’s history is that of a prolific fundraiser, and he could be waiting for
the perfect time to release his own bombshell number. But recent reports
indicate his cash flow has tapered after his initial campaign kickoff.

Giannoulias had several big fundraising quarters before the February primary.
But he has been silent even as Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) announced he raised $2.2
million in the last three months. The two are competing for President Barack
Obama’s old Senate seat.

In California, Fiorina is also waiting to release her
numbers.

Fiorina is personally wealthy but has pledged not to self-fund her campaign.
Observers are waiting to see if she is getting financial support from donors or
if she has had to rely on her own money.

One of her main primary opponents, former Rep. Tom Campbell
(Calif.), announced earlier this week that he’d raised $1.63 million in the
last quarter.

“If you’ve got bad numbers you want to bury it; if you’ve got good numbers you
want to release it [so as] to have the most devastating effect on the
opposition,” Phillips said.

Rep. Kendrick Meek’s (D) campaign also has not released its first quarter
fundraising figures. Meek is running as a Democratic candidate for Florida’s
Senate seat.

Phillips compared the release of fundraising numbers to the
“reveal” at a burlesque show — the dancer teases the audience with a glimpse of
what they might see later. “You want to minimize expectations, or control
expectations in such a way that no matter what number you release, be it good
or bad, it appears great,” he said.

In New Hampshire, the leading Democratic candidates in the 2nd district
have both released their numbers, but not at the same time and not the same
figures.

Katrina Swett announced Thursday she raised
$325,000 since launching her campaign in January. Swett also had the advantage
of starting the race with money left over from her brief 2008 Senate run. As a
result, her House campaign ended the first fundraising quarter with over $1
million in the bank, $970,000 of which is designated for the primary.

One of Swett’s main rivals for the nod, attorney Ann McLane Kuster,
reported raising $285,000 in the last quarter. Kuster’s campaign opted to focus
on thesupport she’s received from in-state donors; she noted that $475,000 of the
campaign’s total of $835,000 came from New Hampshire donors.

But the Kuster camp said it’s waiting for the April 15
deadline to release its cash on hand, which may be significantly lower than
Swett’s total.

“Ultimately, if you’ve got bad numbers, you don’t want any story at all,” said
Phillips. “What do you do? You can try to change the subject.”