Not only are Harry Reid and Sharron Angle tied in Nevada polls, the two candidates enter the final stretch of the 2010 campaign with the same amount of cash in the bank.
According to finance reports filed Friday, Reid and Angle each had roughly $4 million in the bank as of Oct. 1. As The Upshot reported Tuesday, Angle raised a record-breaking $14.3 million in the last three months, but her campaign revealed Friday that she spent nearly $12 million on ads and fundraising. (She began the reporting period with $2 million in the bank.)
Reid began July with nearly $9 million in the bank and, as reported by the Las Vegas Sun's Jon Ralston, Reid raised just $2.8 million in the last three months. But Reid spent more than $7 million on ads, ending the month on equal financial footing with Angle.
Of course, this is only a small portion of the money that will be spent on the race in coming days. Conservative groups, including American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS, say they plan to spend millions more on ads aimed at defeating Reid. Meanwhile, Senate Democrats plan to spend at least $2.5 million on ads backing Reid—a total that could go higher, given Reid's dismal performance in Thursday night's Senate debate.
(Photo of Reid and Angle at the Nevada debate: Julie Jacobson/AP)
Edited by Andrew Golis
Edited by Jade Walker
Edited by Ben Patterson
