Freshmen gearing up to work off debt from their ’10 campaigns

Nearly a dozen freshmen lawmakers in the House begin the 2012 election cycle with more than $200,000 in debt left over from their 2010 campaigns.

For members likely to face tough reelection races next year, getting out from under that debt quickly will be a key early test of their viability.

{mosads}Freshman Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.), who upset Democrat Melissa Bean in one of the closest races in the country last year, reported $361,000 in debt, tens of thousands of it incurred in legal fees while preparing for a potential recount, according to his year-end FEC filing.

Walsh is one of 19 House Republicans the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has already gone after with radio ads, and the conservative group American Crossroads has already defended him with radio ads of its own.

Nevada GOP Rep. Joe Heck, who just defeated Democrat Dina Titus, was another. He reported $203,000 in debt to various consultants and vendors.

A handful of other likely Democratic targets in the party’s drive next year to take back the House start the year with six-figure campaign debts, including Reps. Mike Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Dave Reichert (R-Wash.), Robert Dold (R-Ill.) and David Rivera (R-Fla.), who is also facing an ongoing investigation into his personal finances.


Fitzpatrick reported $129,000 in debt, Reichert $137,000 and Rivera $131,000. Rivera managed to raise just $8,500 between Nov. 23 and Dec. 31.
Dold, who now occupies the Democratic-leaning district vacated by Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), reported $143,000 in debt, almost all of it owed to campaign vendors.

Not all campaign debt is created equal, though. Personal loans make up the bulk of the debt for many lawmakers, which means they don’t necessarily need to rush to pay themselves back and could choose to keep the debt on the books for a while without having vendors banging down their doors for the cash.

A case in point is former Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), who reported $1.6 million in campaign debt despite raising more than $6 million during the 2010 cycle. Grayson’s debt comes thanks to personal loans dating all the way back to 2006.

For three GOP freshmen in Texas, their campaign debt comes almost entirely in the form of personal loans. Rep. Quico Canseco, who defeated Democrat Ciro Rodriguez, reported just more than $1.1 million in debt; Rep. Bill Flores, who beat Democrat Chet Edwards, owes $730,000; and one of the most unlikely new members of the delegation, Rep. Blake Farenthold, is $156,000 in debt as a result of a personal loan. Farenthold pulled off one of the biggest upsets of 2010 by defeating longtime Democratic Rep. Solomon Ortiz.

A slew of other freshmen lawmakers also reported sizable debt entirely in the form of personal loans. Reps. Nan Hayworth (R-N.Y.), David McKinley (R-W.Va.), Scott Rigell (R-Va.), Frank Guinta (R-N.H.) and Diane Black (R-Tenn.) all owe themselves more than $375,000.

Hayworth reported $500,000 of debt, McKinley $670,000, Rigell $378,000, Guinta $355,000 and Black $1 million.

Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) reported $523,000 in debt, but just $23,000 of it is owed to a campaign vendor. The rest comes in the form of five personal loans. It is the same for Rep. Richard Hanna (R-N.Y.), who reported $536,000 in debt, just $32,000 of it to vendors.

Rep. Sandy Adams (R-Fla.) is in a similar spot, albeit with a smaller loan. Adams, who defeated Democrat Suzanne Kosmas, is just more than $100,000 in debt from a personal loan during the GOP primary. Adams has a debt retirement fundraiser planned next month in Washington.

No matter what form it comes in, though, the ability to quickly raise the cash to get out of that post-election money hole will prove the earliest sign of strength ahead of 2012. The longer members keep debt on their campaign books, the more attractive they may look to potential challengers in 2012.

Flores, Canseco and Hanna were among the lawmakers who held debt-retirement events in Washington before they were even sworn in as members of the 112th Congress.

One incumbent who’s sure to face a challenge in 2012 and starts the year in strong position is Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.). Despite a close and expensive 2010 contest, West managed to raise $65,000 between Nov. 23 and Dec. 31 and has no lingering debt. Former Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.), who hasn’t ruled out a rematch next year, reported a modest $18,000 in debt.

The real test for members trying to dig their way out of campaign debt will be the first quarter 2011 fundraising report. The final months of the year after a tough and expensive election cycle are the most difficult to raise money, especially for House members who know they need to start rattling donors early in the new year.

And freshmen lawmakers aren’t alone. All six of the major party committees also begin the year saddled with debt, but none starts off in a worse spot than the Republican National Committee. The RNC still has $23 million worth of debt as new Chairman Reince Priebus begins the task of rebuilding the committee’s relationships with major donors in the wake of former Chairman Michael Steele’s reign as head of the RNC.

The Democratic National Committee is in a better spot with $16 million of debt to start the year, but the Democratic House and Senate campaign committees are both carrying larger debts than those of their GOP counterparts.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee reported $19 million in debt, while the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is $8.8 million in debt. The Republican National Congressional Committee reported $10.5 million in debt, while the National Republican Senatorial Committee reported $6.5 million.