MA-03: On Monday, nonprofit director Steve Kerrigan announced he was dropping out of the very crowded and very expensive September Democratic primary for this open seat. Kerrigan, who was Team Blue's 2014 nominee for lieutenant governor, cited the recent death of his mother.
This Merrimack Valley seat, which includes Lawrence and Lowell, backed Clinton 58-35, and a host of Democrats are running to succeed retiring Rep. Niki Tsongas. Daniel Koh resigned as chief of staff to Boston Mayor Marty Walsh to run here, and he's been making the most of his extensive connections. Koh raised $805,000 during the final quarter of 2017, a haul that's larger than what some top-tier Senate candidates have brought in, and he ended the year with $1.45 million in the bank.
However, he's far from the only Democrat with access to money. Lori Trahan, who used to serve as chief of staff to former Rep. Marty Meehan and reportedly has the support of much of his political network, raised $310,000 for the quarter and had $510,000 on-hand. Rufus Gifford, who was the 2012 Obama campaign's finance director before becoming U.S. ambassador to Denmark, took in close to $500,000 after his first month-and-a-half in the race, and he ended the year with $417,000 on-hand. Hotel executive Beej Das only raised $151,000 from donors, but he self-funded another $280,000 and ended 2017 with $412,000 on-hand.
A few local elected officials are also in. State Sen. Barbara L'Italien took in $270,000 for her first quarter as a declared candidate and ended the year with $245,000 in the bank. State Rep. Juana Matias, who unseated a longtime incumbent last cycle to win her seat, raised $212,000 for her first quarter and had $182,000 on-hand. Former Navy intelligence officer Alexandra Chandler, who would be the first openly transgender member of Congress, has gotten some national attention, but she had just $36,000 in the bank.
This seat will be a tough lift for Team Red, but they also have a candidate who has the resources to run a credible campaign. Auto-parts company owner Rick Green raised $339,000 from donors during his first quarter in the race and he self-funded another $120,000, leaving him with a $386,000 war chest.
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