Gallagher’s loans to race hit $450,000

Benjamin Grove

Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2004 | 9:34 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- The millionaire challenger to Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., wrote his campaign yet another check late last week, upping his personal contributions to about $450,000.

Former casino executive Tom Gallagher gave himself $72,750 Friday, according to the most recent Federal Election Commission filings.

Porter still has the most campaign cash in the 3rd Congressional District race with more than $1.1 million on hand. Gallagher has $385,277, according to the FEC filings. A pre-primary FEC filing was due Friday.

Gallagher is considered the leader among six Democrats vying for a shot at Porter's seat in the primary next week.

Gallagher's ability to reach into his own pocket for gobs of cash is worrisome, Mike Slanker, a political consultant working for Porter's campaign, said.

"You always tend to worry about a guy who thinks he can buy an election," Slanker said.

But Gallagher is raising money from a "variety of sources," his campaign manager, Josh Geise, said. Geise would not comment on how much of Gallagher's own money would ultimately be spent on the race. He said the campaign still intends to raise roughly $2 million.

Gallagher has raised $758,862 so far, in addition to nearly $450,000 he loaned his campaign, according to the FEC filing.

Both campaigns intend to spend money on television commercials and grass-roots efforts in the next two months. Roughly 75 percent of the money could be spent on television ads, Slanker said.

"TV is quite expensive here (in Nevada)," Slanker said.

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., has $993,293 cash on hand, giving her a commanding lead over would-be challengers. She faces two Democratic challengers in the primary. Three GOP candidates also are vying for a shot at the 1st District seat.

It's not clear yet how much money Berkley will spend and how much she will save for future races, Berkley campaign manager and finance director Renee Aschoff said.

Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., faces no GOP challenge in the primary in his bid for a fifth term in the 2nd District. Gibbons has $510,502 for campaigning. He has raised $22,324 since July 1.

Two Democrats from Pahrump are making long-shot bids for Gibbons' seat in the heavily Republican district, which includes most of the state and a piece of Clark County. No Democrat has ever been elected to represent the district since it was created in 1982.

David J. Bennett, a computer programmer at University Medical Center, has $6,764 in cash on hand, according to the FEC filing. No pre-primary campaign filing was available for Angie Cochran, a long-time Nevada resident who favors Yucca Mountain.

Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., is not up for re-election this year. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., has no primary challenger, but has $4.6 million in his war chest. A possible challenger to Reid, Richard Ziser, the likely leader among six Republicans on the primary ballot, has $5,061 cash on hand, according to his FEC filing. The Ziser campaign also has nearly $258,000 in debts.