This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
U.S. Rep. Mia Love has shown her fundraising dominance in the past three months, nearly doubling her cash lead over Democrat Doug Owens in what is expected to be Utah's most competitive and most expensive congressional race this year.
The latest reports, covering April through June, show that Love now has $1.49 million at her disposal, while Owens has $889,900. That's about double the $279,000 advantage she had at the end of the last fundraising period.
"I am very grateful to the thousands of people who have shown their support for the service I have provided in Congress," said the freshman lawmaker, who has a national fundraising network in large part because she is the first black Republican woman elected to Congress.
She also tends to spend more because of her strategy to seek contributions through mailers, which are expensive.
This period, she raised $804,500 and spent $409,400.
Owens, a lawyer and the son of the late Rep. Wayne Owens, raised $369,400 and spent $245,600. He was outspent 6-to-1 in his 2014 loss to Love. His improved fundraising will reduce that margin and give him a more robust advertising campaign in a 4th District race that is now seen as a tossup.