Candidates for Congress in race for donations

Erin Neff

Monday, Dec. 10, 2001 | 9:47 a.m.

With the next campaign finance reports due Dec. 31, candidates for Congress are trying to get as much cash in the bank to make their required filing a siren call to other donors.

"That report sends a message," Las Vegas Councilwoman Lynette Boggs McDonald said. She is running for Nevada's 1st Congressional District against incumbent Democrat Shelley Berkley. "Not only is it important how much you have, but also the people who donate help attract others."

Boggs McDonald declined to say how much money she anticipates having by year end, but she previously stated she would like to have $250,000 as a good start to tell other Republicans her campaign is serious.

"My goal has always been to position myself nationwide as the No. 1 challenger," Boggs McDonald said.

She will need to make a big statement with the year-end report if Berkley's fund-raising continues as successfully as it started.

Berkley said she expects $800,000 in the bank by then.

Nevada's newly created 3rd Congressional District is already drawing nationwide attention as the two main parties spin pre-2002 rhetoric about the razor-thin Republican edge in the House of Representatives.

Democrats need to make up six seats to take back control of Congress, and Nevada's new seat is seen by both parties as critical to that balance.

"This will probably, unfortunately, be one of the most expensive races in the nation," said Jon Porter, a Republican state senator seeking the seat.

Clark County Commission Chairman Dario Herrera has been on a fund-raising crusade lately, attending events in Chicago, meeting labor leaders at the AFL-CIO convention and eyeing a Dec. 11 event hosted by developer Irwin Molasky at Park Towers.

"I expect to have $650,000 in the bank at the end of the year," said Herrera, a Democrat. "I've been telling people about my ideas and talking about issues and they are responding."

Porter, who has had two Republican "celebrities" come to town to help him raise money, would not disclose how much he has raised.

When pushed, Porter said: "We best leave that to the end of the year."

But he did say he has been working hard to collect funds and anticipates a report that will help his campaign solicit more money.

Two weeks ago, former Republican presidential candidate Steve Forbes helped Porter raised $40,000. Porter also got help at a fund-raiser this summer from Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris.

"We've been working hard since June and we're going to report our money by the end of the year," he assured.

The race for Nevada's 2nd Congressional District is not shaping up as a competitive one, thus allowing Republican incumbent Jim Gibbons to use his campaign coffers as something of a political action committee.

Gibbons expects $600,000 in the bank by the end of the year, and has already donated to Boggs McDonald's campaign, she said.

"We don't place a heavy, major emphasis on fund-raising," said Gibbons, who has only token opposition thus far. "But the demographics of the district with 1.2 million constituents makes it necessary to raise money to communicate your message."

Boggs McDonald said she thinks having Gibbons and Sen. John Ensign, R-Nevada, listed as campaign donors will help national money come in.

"That sends a message," she said.