GOP Senate candidate in blue New Mexico posts record fundraising haul: Campaign

Republican Senate hopeful Nella Domenici in New Mexico hauled in $2.9 million in the second quarter of 2024, a sum that her campaign dubbed "the largest fundraising quarter of any U.S. Senate candidate in New Mexico political history."

Domenici, a former hedge fund executive, received the donations through her Senate campaign and its affiliated joint fundraising committee. The candidate would be the first Republican to win a Senate election in the Land of Enchantment in over two decades, with the last being her father, the late Pete Domenici.

"The momentum is growing, the movement is building, and our state is ready for new leadership,” Nella Domenici said. “New Mexico is at a tipping point, and I’m grateful to all of those who are rallying behind our campaign to demand more for our state and our nation."

The Republican is aiming to unseat Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), who has been in the Senate since 2013 and, before that, the House. On the campaign trail, Heinrich has attacked Domenici as out-of-touch for her ties to Wall Street, though the Democrat has accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations over the last decade from wealthy finance industry executives, the Washington Examiner reported .

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Domenici's almost $3 million haul between April and June is more than double the $1.25 million she received from donors in the first quarter of this year. The turmoil in the wake of President Joe Biden 's lackluster debate performance this month could create an opening for Republicans to strengthen their positions ahead of the 2024 elections, though New Mexico remains a difficult state for the GOP.

The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan elections tracker, rates the New Mexico Senate seat "solid blue." Notably, however, a recent poll commissioned by Domenici and the National Republican Senatorial Committee found Heinrich ahead of the GOP candidate by just 3 percentage points.