Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Santa Clarita, and Democratic challenger Christy Smith have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars during the first quarter of 2021, according to Federal Elections Commission filings recently released on the FEC’s website.
Garcia’s campaign committee received $656,876.55 in donations and spent $571,736.39 during the first three months of the year. Garcia’s campaign has $462,998.43 of cash on hand as of March 31.
“It’s clear Mike’s message of fighting for lower taxes for working families, protecting our border, and standing up to foes like China continues to resonate with the voters who sent him to Congress nearly one year ago,” Lance Trover, a spokesman for Garcia’s campaign, said in a prepared statement Monday.
Smith, a former state assemblywoman, raised $103,909.94 and spent $127,115.82 during the first quarter of 2021. Her campaign has $146,051.77 as of March 31.
“Christy Smith announced she would run in 2022 on March 31st,” said Adam Robek, a spokesman for Smith’s campaign, in an email statement sent to The Signal on Wednesday. “She began fundraising the first day of Q2, on April 1st, and since then, every day has received widespread support from grassroots activists, low-dollar donors, leaders and organizations representing working women and men.”
Both Garcia and Smith filed paperwork to run for California’s 25 Congressional District — which includes Santa Clarita Valley, Antelope Valley and Simi Valley — in late November.
Democrat Rhoda Nazanin filed to run in February. Nazanin, a project manager at the Skirball Cultural Center, raised $34,965.46 and spent $6,885.09. At the end of March, her campaign had $28,080.37 of cash on hand.
“We knew going into this race that Mike Garcia was a prodigious fundraiser backed by special interests, and to win, Democrats will need a dynamic candidate who is able to build a large grassroots fundraising base and spend their resources responsibly,” said Patrick Donahoe, a spokesperson for Nazanin’s campaign.
Simi Valley Councilwoman Ruth Luevanos, a Democrat who announced her candidacy this month, did not have fundraising figures to report for the first quarter of the year. Neither did Chris Bellingham, a Democrat who joined the race in March.
An earlier edition of this story stated Rhoda Nazanin did not have fundraising figures to report. On Saturday, April 17, The Signal obtained Nazanin’s FEC filing for the first quarter of 2021 and updated this story.
