With early voting underway in Ohio’s primary election, two Democratic candidates for the 3rd Congressional District are raising critiques of the other’s fundraising.
Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), a popular incumbent, hasn't faced a primary opponent since she first ran for the seat in 2012. That changed with Morgan Harper, a former Consumer Financial Protect Bureau worker who’s challenging Beatty from the left on issues including health care and income inequality.
Speaking on WOSU’s All Sides With Ann Fisher on Tuesday, Harper took issue with the sources of Beatty’s campaign funds.
"Rep. Beatty is a traditional politician and does take 80% of her money from corporations,” Harper says. “And like I said, I am not taking any corporate money."
Beatty responded that most of Harper’s money comes from out of state, pointing to her first-quarter fundraising report.
“Dozens of pages with 30 contributors per page – hundreds,” Beatty said. “Twenty-two from Ohio.”
The latest FEC campaign reports show Beatty with about $1.7 million in cash on hand, compared to just $273,000 for Harper. Beatty, who has the backing of the Franklin County Democratic Party, out-raised Harper two-to-one in 2019.
Two Republicans, Andrew Littler and Mark Richardson, and were certified to run in the 3rd District primary but have so far not reported any fundraising numbers.
