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In tight NY primary, Latimer laps Bowman in fundraising again — but the incumbent catches up
By
Michelle Bocanegra
Published Apr 10, 2024
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Lev Radin / Pacific Press / LightRocket via Getty Images
By
Michelle Bocanegra
Published Apr 10, 2024
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Westchester County Executive George Latimer, who is vying for Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s seat in one of the country's most competitive Democratic primaries, announced a more than $2.2 million fundraising haul on Wednesday for the first three months of the year — again exceeding the incumbent’s numbers by nearly double.
Bowman raised $1.3 million as he faces a serious primary threat from Latimer, a veteran elected official in New York. The $725,000 that Bowman reported for the previous quarter lagged behind Latimer’s $1.4 million, which he raised within weeks of announcing his candidacy in December.
“Latimer is a county executive, so he can likely raise money from a larger group of donors, and on average, those donors are probably wealthier than many of the folks Bowman currently represents in the district,” said Basil Smikle, a longtime Democratic strategist and former executive director of the state's Democratic Party.
The district is heavily Democratic and spans southern Westchester and a sliver of the northern Bronx. Bowman's allies celebrated the inclusion of Co-op City — a large residential complex with a significant Black population and relatively high turnout in elections — into the district's redrawn boundaries earlier this year after pushing for it during redistricting.
Bowman’s campaign said 75% of the contributions he received were under $30 each. The progressive, an outspoken critic of the Israeli government’s conduct in its war with Hamas, has drawn the ire of pro-Israel organizations such as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which has thrown its full support and its fundraising network behind Latimer.
Bowman's campaign cited his latest haul as the most money he’s raised since toppling 16-term Rep. Eliot Engel in 2020.
“This is true grassroots, small-dollar fundraising, and unlike our opponent we have never held fundraisers hosted by Wall Street fraudsters or Trump megadonors,” Bowman's campaign manager Gabe Tobias said in a statement.
But Latimer’s latest fundraising total is a measurable success for his campaign as he and Bowman jockey for voters’ support ahead of the June 25 congressional primary.
“As our campaign continues to grow, it is clear that New Yorkers of the 16th Congressional District want an effective leader that will get the job done," Latimer said in a statement.
The county executive has picked up a string of endorsements from the more traditional Westchester establishment, including throngs of Democratic town and city committees, and from big names like former New York Gov. David Paterson.
Meanwhile, Bowman was recently endorsed by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and enjoys support from unions and progressive heavyweights like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Though Bowman still has vocal support from the political left, Smikle said the enthusiasm appeared more tempered than in 2020, when he took on the Democratic establishment as a middle-school principal who unseated Engel. He is the first Black person to hold the district’s seat.
“I imagine there’d be a lot of interest in making sure that the district, which does have a significant percentage of Black and minority voters, that those interests are represented in Congress,” said Smikle. “So even though the money advantage is significant by most measures … I do think that there’s still a lot of interest in having that district be represented by someone of color.”
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Michelle Bocanegra
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