HELENA – Republican U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte has loaned his campaign $1 million this month, after his fundraising had lagged behind that of Democratic challenger Kathleen Williams in the past five months.
Through October 17, Williams, a former state lawmaker from Bozeman, had raised about $3 million from donors since mid-May. During that same period, Gianforte raised $1.75 million from donors.
A pair of $500,000 personal loans this month upped his campaign income to $2.75 million since mid-May.
Recent polls have shown Gianforte with a single-digit lead over Williams in the race for Montana’s only U.S. House seat. Gianforte, a Bozeman businessman and philanthropist, is running for his first full term, having first won the seat in a special election in May 2017.
Williams has reported strong fundraising since she won a six-way primary in June to become the Democratic nominee. She’s taken in $3.04 million since May 17, almost entirely from individuals, including $411,000 in the first 17 days of October.
About $1.5 million of Gianforte’s $1.75 million take during the same period also has come from individuals. He raised $216,000 from donors during the first 17 days of October.
Since mid-May, the Gianforte campaign has slightly outspent Williams, $3.1 million to $2.66 million.
His campaign started the period with about $1 million in the bank, while Williams had only about $100,000 in mid-May. Overall, Gianforte’s 2018 campaign has outraised Williams by $4.5 million to $3.3 million.
