Lots of people thought that Michael Skelly (D) would be a long shot against incumbent John Culberson (R) for the 7th Congressional district of Texas. He started with little name recognition but quickly made national news by out-fundraising the incumbent fairly early in the race.
Skelly has even more good news to report today... More after the jump...
Michael Skelly has just reported that he is ending the second quarter of 2008 with more than $1 million cash on hand. Yep, that's right -- he didn't just raise a million, he's got a million leftover from the work he's been doing. He is ready to fight for this seat (and you can help too).
This from the campaign:
The Skelly for Congress campaign announced today that Michael Skelly brought in $612,000 in the second quarter of 2008. That number includes a $200,000 contribution from Skelly himself. The campaign has over one million dollars cash on hand.
"Our fundraising success is the product of a broad base of grassroots support and a growing excitement about the campaign," said Skelly Campaign Manager Greg Leifer. "We will have the resources to tell Houston voters about Michael’s background as a successful wind energy businessman, and his vision for a balanced approach to energy issues."
Skelly received 1,079 total contributions. Of those, 98.7% came from individuals with an average donation of $376. His contributors represent strong bipartisan support, with people all across the political spectrum.
I've been saying for quite a while that this is a race to watch, and sure enough about a month ago, it was added to the DCCC list of emerging races. The Swing State Project also has this race in their Races to Watch list.