You won't find too many hints about the ramp-up to the 2018 race for governor in the latest financial disclosures.
Three possible GOP candidates for the state's top job - Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, Attorney General Sam Olens and Secretary of State Brian Kemp - all show little activity on their latest fundraising reports for a five-month span ending in June.
Cagle reported raising about $23,000 since the opening week of January,
in his campaign war chest. Olens
in the last five months and he has roughly $80,000 to spare. Kemp is in a slightly better financial position than both; he has about $200,000 in the tank after raising $33,000 since January.
(Another possible GOP candidate, Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, had $380,000 in the bank at the time of his last disclosure in March.)
State law prohibits them from using money raised for one office to run for another office. So the lack of fundraising activity could be a signal that each is setting their sights elsewhere. Or it could mean they are taking their time to gear up.
Jason Carter, a potential Democratic candidate, offers us a bit of a clue about his future aspirations: He closed out his 2014 campaign account with a $656.28 payment to a new PAC he's forming called Generation Georgia. He remains tight-lipped on its purpose.
And House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams has about $30,000 in her campaign war chest.
Gov. Nathan Deal, meanwhile, has less than $30,000 cash on hand and raised just $750 since the opening weeks of January from two donors: Martin Valbuena, a Paulding County magistrate judge; and an Atlanta-based labor and employment law practice.
About the Author
