Blackburn breaks own quarterly fundraising record

Previous record set during 2002 campaign

Email | Print By John Rodgers

Marsha Blackburn

A primary challenge has aroused Marsha Blackburn’s fund-raising prowess.

Congressman Blackburn (R-Brentwood) bested her own quarterly fund-raising record this year, taking in about $315,000 for the second quarter, a campaign spokeswoman said.

“It is going to be the biggest fund-raising quarter of her political career,” said campaign spokeswoman Darcy Anderson, adding that her previous record was $291,000 when she was first elected in 2002.

Blackburn, running for a fourth term to represent the 7th Congressional District, is facing a GOP primary challenger in Tom Leatherwood, Shelby County’s Register of Deeds.

Leatherwood could not be immediately reached for comment about how much money he has raised. However, in a previous interview, Leatherwood said conjuring campaign contributions had been “difficult” and he was running a “hand to mouth” campaign.

The FEC’s deadline for reporting second-quarter fund-raising is today. Neither Blackburn nor Leatherwood have officially filed.

The figures Anderson cited were close estimates. Those figures included cash on hand of about $850,000 while spending $255,000 for the second quarter.