More than a dozen congressional candidates told the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday how much money they raised in the second quarter — highly anticipated figures for political observers trying to gauge the strength of the different campaigns.
But the numbers that candidates file with the government, as required by federal law, sometimes tell a different story than what political aides publicize in advance.
Former Prince George's County Councilwoman Ingrid Turner, a Democrat running in Maryland's 4th Congressional District, distributed a press release Tuesday claiming her campaign "raised" more than $260,000. The release went on to note that 75 percent of the donations were $100 or less, "showing the strong grassroots effort of the Turner campaign."
Omitted from Turner's release was any mention of the $220,000 loan the candidate had made to herself, representing 84 percent of her total haul.
In an interview Friday, Turner said her campaign didn't intend to inflate her fundraising position. She said her own money spends just as effectively on campaign expenses as money from donors.
"It's important that I'm putting skin in the game," Turner said.
Candidates for the 4th and 8th Congressional Districts, as well as the two lawmakers running for Senate to replace retiring Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, filed hundreds of pages of reports with the FEC. Such reports are due on a quarterly basis.
But the desire to get a glimpse of the top-line figures before those reports — for media, consultants and competing campaigns — is high. Absent public polling, fundraising totals are one of the few opportunities to assess a campaign.
Some candidates leave out key context when previewing numbers: Rep. Donna F. Edwards, who is running for Senate, declined to state how much cash she has on hand. Her FEC report later showed that number to be just under $419,000. Her opponent, Rep. Chris Van Hollen, whose report has not yet posted, is expected to have $3.5 million on hand.
Others, particularly those whose fundraising is not as strong as expected, release their numbers at unusual times. Edwards disclosed her latest on a federal holiday. Former Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown, who is running in the 4th District, announced he had raised $122,000 at 8 p.m. on Wednesday.
And some candidates include donations from past quarters. Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk, also running in the 4th District, announced in a press release Monday she had raised $210,000 "since filing." Her FEC report showed she raised $168,000 in the second quarter.
A spokeswoman for Peña-Melnyk said in an email that merging the two quarters was appropriate because that's how long the candidate had been in the race. Besides, spokeswoman Michelle García wrote, the final numbers "are all there in black and white in the campaign's reports to the FEC."
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