WASHINGTON -- — Rep. Donna F. Edwards is calling for candidates running in Maryland's Senate contest to reject political donations from Wall Street -- her latest effort to court support from progressive Democrats.
"I will not accept any donations from Wall Street banks in my campaign for Maryland's open U.S. Senate seat," the Prince George's County Democrat writes in an email blasted to members of Democracy for America, a liberal group that is supporting her Senate campaign.
"I am calling on all candidates in this race to stand with me in rejecting contributions from Wall Street banks like Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and Bank of America," she writes.
The email -- which mentions Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren six times -- goes on to request contributions of "$3 or more now to help me take this stand against Wall Street's biggest banks." Warren, a hero of the progressive movement, has been among Wall Street's most vocal critics.
In her race to replace retiring Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, Edwards has been championing her liberal bona fides on issues such as Social Security and entitlements.
It's not clear Edwards is giving up much by swearing off Wall Street money because it's unlikely she would have received much of it in the first place.
But whether the challenge to other candidates will have an effect on the race remains to be seen. So far, Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Montgomery County is the only other politician to enter the race. His campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Van Hollen announced last week that he raised $1.2 million in the first quarter of this year -- a solid showing that reinforced his competitiveness. But Van Hollen hasn't been cozy with Wall Street, either. Earlier this year he proposed a fee on financial transactions that drew howls from the securities industry.
An analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics finds that the industries most likely to donate to Van Hollen in the past were health care, insurance, law firms and unions.
Other potential candidates, such as Baltimore Rep. Elijah E. Cummings and Rep. John Sarbanes of Baltimore County, have war chests built up from previous campaigns -- though both would have to raise more money for a Senate contest than they have previously.
The average cost of a winning Senate campaign in 2012 was more than $11 million.
Rep. John Delaney of Montgomery County, a former banker, has a proven ability to raise large sums quickly and also a willingness to put millions of his own money into a contest. Delaney has received more campaign money from donors involved with securities and investments than any other industry, though he joined Warren and the Obama administration in late February to call for stronger oversight of brokers who help people plan for retirement.