Washington • Sen. Orrin Hatch and Rep. Jason Chaffetz raised more campaign money in the past three months than they ever have before, but the difference between the fundraising hauls of two likely 2012 Senate rivals is massive.
Hatch raised $1.3 million in the period, a record for a Utah candidate for federal office, and more than 10 times Chaffetz's total of $124,000, according to campaign disclosure reports released before Friday's due date.
The senator has already amassed a campaign staff of 28 people and spent more than $165,000 on polling in what is expected to be a tough campaign against a tea party-backed challenger. In all, Hatch's campaign spent more than $800,000 from April to the end of June and has $3.4 million left in the bank.
"We are going to spend what is necessary to make sure that the senator's message gets out to voters," said Hatch's campaign manager, Dave Hansen.
Chaffetz has made no secret about his interest in running against Hatch for the GOP nomination, but unlike the senator, he hasn't formally announced or ramped up his campaign operation. He brushed off Hatch's financial edge.
"I really don't give a hoot about how much money he raises," Chaffetz said. "If I run this will be a campaign about who could do more with less."
Chaffetz's quarterly fundraising amounts have grown modestly over the past few years. A month ago he alleged that Hatch is scaring away Chaffetz's potential donors, saying: "He has been more direct in telling people 'don't you dare donate. I'm watching.' "
Hansen said that is not true.
Some prominent Utah donors gave to both, such as the political action committee of defense contractor ATK. Also, IM Flash, which is represented by Stan Lockhart, the former Utah Republican Party chairman and husband of state House Speaker Becky Lockhart, held separate fundraisers for each candidate.
"We wanted to be supportive of both elected officials," Stan Lockhart said.
Jennifer Duffy, at Cook Political Report, says one of the benefits Chaffetz gains from not officially announcing his campaign is that it gives cover to donors to contribute to both men.
"Once [Chaffetz] is in the race, they have to make a decision, so they should give while the giving is safe," she said.
Hatch is likely to maintain his dominant financial position, in part because the six-term senator has a few built-in advantages. He is the senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, a powerful perch that will attract the attention of a broad swath of political interests. He's also the vice chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which gave him the maximum contribution of $41,300.
Hatch also collected $17,000 from those associated with the Koch Industries, including $5,000 from David Koch, a prominent libertarian who has spent heavily to promote conservative causes.
Other donors include presidential candidate Mitt Romney's political action committee, and fellow GOP Sens. Rob Portman, of Ohio, and Thad Cochran, of Mississippi.
Chaffetz's biggest donors include $10,000 from Blake Roney and his wife, Nancy. Roney is the chairman of Nu Skin, a dietary supplement company that Chaffetz previously worked for. He also raised $20,000 from executives at Vivint, formerly APXAlarm.
mcanham@sltrib.comTwitter: @mattcanham
