The Democratic primary race in the 1st Congressional District is more than three months away.
But when it comes to the money chase, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell has more than twice the spending cash than incumbent U.S. Rep. Cori Bush of ºüÀêÊÓƵ.
Bell’s campaign has slightly more than $1.14 million cash on hand, compared to about $529,000 for Bush, according to federal campaign reports filed Monday to cover the first three months of 2024.Â
Bell reported that in the first quarter of this year, his campaign raised about $952,000. In that same time period, Bush’s team raised about $590,000.
Since Bell entered the race in November, his campaign has raised about $1.72 million; Bush has taken in about $1.55 million.
Two items of note from Bush’s report:
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Her committee reported that it has about $92,000 in debts, with about $78,000 of that owed to law firms in New York and Washington.
Also, her husband, Cortney Merritts III, remains on her payroll and continues to make $5,000 a month that is classified as a “wage expense.â€
Merritts’ employment has been an issue with Bush’s detractors for more than a year. Calling the complaints “frivolous,†Bush has confirmed that federal investigators are looking into her spending on security services.
Bell joined the U.S. House race on Nov. 1, surprising some political observers by withdrawing from a race for the U.S. Senate to oppose Bush.
His jump to oppose Bush came on the heels of Bush’s embrace of a pro-Palestine stance after the Oct. 7 on Israeli civilians by terrorist group Hamas.
Pro-Israel lobbying groups reportedly have set aside millions of dollars to defeat Bush and several other members of Congress who they say do not support Israel.
A third candidate in the race, former state legislator Maria Chappelle-Nadal, has raised about $15,000 and has spent less than $1,000. She did not enter the race until early February.
To date, Chappelle-Nadal has focused her campaign on criticizing Bell, taking aim at what she alleges are failures to prosecute dangerous criminals and unacceptable sexual behavior in the prosecutor’s office.
The 1st Congressional District covers ºüÀêÊÓƵ and parts of north and west ºüÀêÊÓƵ County. It is overwhelmingly Democratic and the winner of the Aug. 6 primary is all but assured of winning the general election in November.