Rep. Jacky Rosen has a lot of money coming in to support her Senate bid against incumbent Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), and Heller believes that a fundraising imbalance could be the factor that costs him his seat, according to the Washington Examiner.
Heller has been out-fundraised by a significant margin during the first two weeks of October, and in a close race, every dollar could make a difference.
"It would be the only reason (Rosen might win)," Heller said over the weekend. "Republicans better figure this out real quick because there's only a few of us who can win and be outspent 3-1. There's only a few of us."
Rosen's campaign raised $5.1 million, or $300,000 per day, between October 1 and 17, compared to only $1.4 million for Heller in that same time frame.
Heller said he doesn't believe the money has much to do with enthusiastic support for Rosen as a candidate specifically, but rather it is simply an effort by donors to unseat Republicans.
"We raise $1 million a week. She raises $1 million a day," Heller said. "And they're not raising money for her, they're raising money for this race. It has nothing to do with her. Look at what happened in North Dakota with Heidi. It's definitely a green wave."
Even with all the money being raised for his opponent, Heller still maintains a slim lead in most polls, although the numbers are typically within the margin of error.
Nevada GOP strategist Greg Ferraro said the fact that Heller still holds a lead despite the fundraising disparity shows how strong he is as a candidate.
"That has to tell you something," Ferraro said. "If you pause and break it down...it tells you people are still holding in there for Heller despite the fact his message doesn't have the same amount of velocity behind it."
