Large donations emphasize gap in Branstad, Hatch war chests

Campaign finance reports released last week and a review of fundraising to date underscore striking differences in the campaigns of incumbent Republican Gov. Terry Branstad and Democratic challenger Jack Hatch.

Branstad nearly tripled Hatch in total fundraising for the May 28-July 14 period, and has outraised him by a margin of almost 10-to-1 for the election cycle overall.

The governor attracted more than $745,000 in combined cash donations and in-kind contributions in the most recent period, and has collected more than $8 million since winning election in November 2010. Hatch, by contrast, raised just over $270,000 in the most recent seven-week period, and has received more than $825,000 since first floating his candidacy publicly in May 2013.

Beyond those raw numbers, the finance data reveal sharply different fundraising approaches and opportunities for the incumbent and the challenger. All in all, the figures highlight the tremendous institutional advantage Branstad enjoys as a five-term governor, the current officeholder and odds-on favorite in the race — and the uphill battle facing Hatch.

Cash is the engine that makes campaigns go, paying for staff, travel, signs, mailers and — most crucially in a statewide race — television ads.

A Des Moines Register analysis of campaign finance records shows Branstad has tapped a deep well of small-dollar contributions for average Iowans, but built his massive cash advantage with help from deep-pocketed individuals, business interests and national sources within his political party.

He's received more than $1 million from the Republican Governors Association and affiliated political action committees — a figure that doesn't include hundreds of thousands more in independent spending by the RGA on his behalf.

Beyond that, Branstad has attracted substantial sums from corporate donors, with some of the top names in Iowa business donating tens of thousands of dollars apiece. PACs representing companies, trade groups and other entities have given his campaign more than $1 million in all.

A coterie of individuals and families have donated repeatedly and generously to Branstad's re-election as well, with a handful giving between $80,000 and $110,000 each.

And Branstad has held several events and raised substantial funds from outside Iowa.

Campaign records show he's collected $2.3 million in out-of-state contributions, including $1.14 million (mostly from the RGA) in Washington, D.C.; more than $210,000 in Florida, where he held a fundraiser with former Gov. Jeb Bush; more than $184,000 in Texas, where he's appeared with Gov. Rick Perry; and nearly $100,000 in New Jersey, where Gov. Chris Christie hosted an event for him.

For all that, though, more than 70 percent of his donations are from Iowans, the records show.

And impressive as the fundraising haul is, it's actually down from Branstad's pace in the 2010 cycle. Between October 2009, when he first opened his committee, and July 14, 2010, Branstad raised $5.6 million. Branstad was the challenger in that race, taking on incumbent Democrat Chet Culver. He also faced a competitive GOP primary.

Hatch, a state senator from Des Moines, has relied more heavily on individuals and, in recent weeks, labor unions to finance his bid for the governor's office.

Records show Hatch's top five donors are all individuals who have chipped in between $25,000 and $40,000 since he announced his candidacy. Contributions from those five donors total more than $155,000 or about 20 percent of his entire haul.

At least $29,000 has come from Hatch, his real-estate development company and members of his family. Hatch has also loaned his campaign $100,000, and his wife has loaned $40,000 to the effort.

Labor unions have contributed another $122,000, and PACs unaffiliated with labor another $60,000. Largely absent, so far, has been support from the local, state or national Democratic Party. Five county Democratic committees have given Hatch a total of $1,550, but neither the Iowa Democratic Party nor the Democratic Governors Association have contributed a dime.

Most of Hatch's funds — more than $630,000, or about 76 percent — have come from donors inside the state.