Dellicker leads money race in 7th Congressional District GOP primary
But Democratic incumbent Wild has more money than GOP candidates combined
Kevin Dellicker continued to outraise and outspend his two Republican opponents in the 7th Congressional District race and had more cash on hand heading into the final weeks of the April 23 primary election.
Meanwhile incumbent U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, who is unopposed in the Democratic primary, continues to widen the gap over a potential Election Day opponent, bringing in more than $1 million into her reelection campaign since January.
Wild, seeking a fourth two-year term in the U.S. House, collected about three times more than the total of the three GOP candidates. With $2.6 million in cash, she is tracking ahead of her fundraising haul from her 2022 race, which turned out to be the most expensive U.S. House race in Pennsylvania.
Candidates were required to file pre-primary campaign finance reports with the Federal Election Commission by April 11. The reports reflect revenue and expenses from Jan. 1 through April 3.
The 7th District comprises all of Carbon, Lehigh and Northampton counties and a small portion of Monroe County. The election for the seat is again considered a toss-up and critical to each party’s quest to control the House of Representatives, where Republicans hold a slim majority.
This year, Dellicker raised $205,601, which includes a $35,000 loan from himself, and spent $241,909, leaving his campaign with $169,383 in cash. He spent twice as much as his opponents, state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie and Maria Montero, combined.
Mackenzie’s campaign raised $68,151 and spent $88,621, leaving $117,145 in cash.
Montero’s campaign raised $66,533 and spent $37,714, leaving $88,706 in cash.
Although his GOP opponents lag behind Dellicker in fundraising, they do not have any debt, something Dellicker has.
Kevin Dellicker
The Kevin Dellicker for Congress committee shows debts from loans and unpaid bills totaling $217,248. About two-thirds of the total – $142,800 – involve loans Dellicker made to his two congressional campaigns – $71,800 to his unsuccessful 2022 primary campaign and $71,000 to his current campaign. Candidates decide whether their loans should be repaid.
In addition to the loans, Dellicker’s committee owes a total of $48,631 to eight companies for campaign services, including direct mail and fundraising. The firms include Forthright Strategy, Washington, D.C. ($19,945); Consolidated Mailing Services, Sterling, Va. ($9,601); Direct Support Services, Fairfax, Va. ($5,462); Image Direct, Frederick, Md. ($7,286); Legacy Lists Inc., Washington, D.C. ($4,805).
Samuel Chen, a spokesman for the Dellicker campaign, explained, “The way mail fundraising works in the campaigns sphere is that mail firms invest financially at the start of the campaign to build a network and system for the primary and general elections. They are then paid back from the money raised. Until that happens, however, it is listed as debt on the campaign finance report.” Chen is principal director of the Liddell Group with offices in the Lehigh Valley and Washington, D.C.
In an interview, Chen said the campaign is on track with its budget and the firms will be paid with money that has been raised. “We’ve gotten exactly where we want to be budget wise,” he said.
This year, Dellicker didn’t receive any significant contributions from political action committees. His contributions from individuals total $170,601, with much of that coming from 250 donors, mostly in the $25 to $500 range. His largest contributions came from two people – Laura Bachenberg of North Whitehall Township, $3,000, and Anne Faust of Newtown Square, $3,300. Bachenberg is co-owner of Lehigh Valley Sporting Clays with her husband, Bill, who gave $3,000 to Dellicker’s campaign last year. In 2020, Bill Bachenberg served as chairperson of the so-called alternate Pennsylvania Electoral College members who stood ready to cast their votes for Donald Trump had he prevailed in his lawsuits claiming he, not Joe Biden, had won the state.
Overall, Dellicker received a total of $201,122 in individual contributions of no more than $200.
Ryan Mackenzie
Of the $68,069 raised this year, the Mackenzie for Congress Committee received nearly $27,000 through WinRed, a Republican online fundraising platform.
Individual donors of note include Ronald Cameron, of Little Rock, Arkansas, chairman of Mountaire Corp., the nation’s fourth largest chicken producer, $3,300; Louis Pektor III, a Lehigh Valley developer, $1,000; and former Lehigh Valley Republican Congressman Donald Ritter, $1,000.
He also received $10,000 from political action and campaign committees, including Always Out Front PAC, affiliated with state Rep. Robert Mercuri from Allegheny County who is running for Congress from the 17th District, $2,000; Build PAC of the National Association of Home Builders, $2,500; East Central House Republican Committee, $2,000; Friends of Milou Mackenzie, the campaign committee for Mackenzie’s mother, a Republican state representative who is seeking reelection from the 131st District.
Overall, Mackenzie received a total of $16,447 in individual contributions of no more than $200.
His campaign expenses went for consulting, fundraising, campaign materials and ads.
Maria Montero
Between Jan. 1 and April 3, Friends of Maria Montero brought in about $52,022 from individual donors and $14,062 from political action committees and political parties.
Individual donors included $3,300 each from Elizabeth Cusimano of Burbank, Calif., David Mafrige of Houston, Texas, and Donna Strohmetz of Malvern; $1,500 each from Philip S. Rosenzweig of Bryn Mawr and Francis Humann of Villanova; $1,000 each from David Galluch of Newtown Square and David Ronca of Bethlehem; and $500 from Gary Iacocca of Allentown, owner of Yocco Hot Dogs.
PAC donations included $10,000 from the Value in Electing Women Political Action Committee, $2,900 from Be Better America PAC, and $1,000 from the Duane Morris Government Committee.
Overall, Montero received a total of $10,413 in individual contributions of no more than $200.
Montero’s expenditures mostly covered consulting fees, credit card processing, printing, database and texting services and postage.
Susan Wild
With more than $2.6 million in the bank thanks to more than $1 million that flowed into her campaign since January, the Susan Wild for Congress committee has about $309,000 more in cash than she had in the first quarter of her 2022 campaign. At that time, she was also unopposed in the primary and defeated Republican Lisa Scheller in November with 51% of the vote.
The 2022 race in the 7th District ended up being the most expensive U.S. House race in Pennsylvania costing about $13.7 million. The total reflects money spent in 2021 and 2022 by Wild, Scheller and Dellicker, Scheller’s 2022 primary opponent.
At nearly $14M, 7th Congressional District race ranks 1st among House races in Pa.
In the first quarter of 2024, Wild’s committee raised $1,377,227 and spent $293,336.
The campaign reported having $2,662,153 in cash at the close of the period. In addition, Wild’s campaign filed 48-hour notices of contributions received on nine days from April 4-14 from individuals and political action committees. Donations on those reports totaled more than $60,000.
Donors
The bulk of the money Wild raised in the first quarter – $890,239 – came from individuals. Political action committees gave $142,686 while political party committees donated $456. A total of $336,930 came from authorized committees that engage in joint fundraising. That included $41,952 from the Cartwright Wild Fund and $264,920 from House Victory Project 2024.
Wild’s campaign finance report runs 1,241 pages. Individual donations were as small as $5 and went up to $3,300. Many donors have been regular contributors throughout the election cycle.
Large donors included $3,300 each from Dave Hall, president of Hallmark, Carolyn Coleman of Perkiomenville, Rachel Dow of New York, Kathleen Weber of Bethlehem, general manager Orasure, and Lynda Resnick of Los Angeles; $2,725 from Lou Cinquino of Bethlehem; $2,500 from attorney Howard Stevens of Allentown; $2,000 from attorney Howard Langer of Philadelphia; and $1,000 from David K. Arthur, vice president of PPL Corp.
PAC contributions included $36,265 from JStreet PAC, which supports a diplomacy-first approach to advancing U.S. interests in the Middle East and promoting peace and security for Israel, and $13,200 from DigiDems PAC.
Other PAC donations included $1,000 from Getting Results By Engaging the Grassroots; $1,500 from the National Emergency Medicine PAC/American College of Emergency Physicians; $2,500 each from Argentum's Silver PAC, American Seniors Housing Association, American Society of Anesthesiologists Political Action Committee, and International Association of Heat & Frost Insulators and Allied Workers PAC; $2,000 from Moms Fed Up; and $5,000 each from Keystone America PAC, Engineers Political Education Committee, American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO COPE, NEA Fund For Children And Public Education and Blue Hen Federal PAC.
During the campaign, Wild raised a total of $543,738 in contributions up to $200.
Expenditures
Wild’s large expenditures included $20,000 to Lindsey Schulte Consulting; $34,795 to Blueprint Interactive for digital consulting and texting services; $12,066 to Cabbage Hill Consulting; $6,000 to Spiros Consulting and $21,500 to Upswing Research & Strategy.
Other expenses included salaries, payroll services, travel, office supplies, postage, direct mailings, catering and technical services. She also received in-kind donations for catering, office supplies, postage and technical services.