CHICO — If contributions are any sign, District 1’s Democratic challenger Audrey Denney might just give three-term incumbent Republican Congressman Doug LaMalfa a run for his money in November.

Since she joined the race, political newcomer Denney of Chico has been consistently leading in donations to her campaign for the previous three filing periods.

She is quick to point out that her donations are largely small ones from individuals, as opposed to big bucks from political action committees. In a tweet on Monday, Denney called out her challenger for raising mostly PAC money. She says she will refuse money from corporate PACs.

July quarterly Federal Election Commission reports show that Denney took in $165,235 from individuals and $3,800 from PACs while LaMalfa earned $64,500 from individual contributors and $68,900 from PACs.

In the prior filing period, Denney got $43,6645 from individuals and $1,000 from PACs while her competitor took in $6,950 from individuals and $22,500 from PACs, according to the pre-primary report.

The April quarterly report showed Denney with $109,870 in individual contributions and $500 from PACs. LaMalfa reported $30,675 in donations from individuals and $52,477 from PACs.

However, LaMalfa has more money in his pocket. Over the election cycle to date, he has raised $591,537 to Denney’s $324,069 in overall contributions. The incumbent reported funds raised for the election as early as April 2017, while Denney declared her candidacy in January of 2018.

A former teacher with a background in agriculture, Denney secured her place on the November ballot after beating three other Democrats, one Green Party member and one other Republican in the top-two primary election in June. After she won the primary, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee took notice and has since been supportive, Denney said.

She has already raised more at this point than LaMalfa’s general election challengers in the past did by the end of their campaigns.

More money for Denney’s campaign means the ability to hire additional staff members, open new offices and get her message out to as many people as possible. She will open an office in Grass Valley in a few days and a field office soon in Chico. Her campaign is headquartered across from the Chico State University campus.

“It really just shows the energy behind this campaign and that people in the 1st District are ready for a change,” she said by phone Thursday.

Meanwhile, LaMalfa is banking on voters wanting the status quo.

Dave Gilliard, a campaign consultant for the congressman, said that the incumbent is not concerned about his opponent’s fundraising efforts.

“He has twice as much money in the bank as the opposition,” Gilliard said.

LaMalfa, who owns a rice farm in Richvale, has represented District 1 since 2013. The district includes the counties of Butte, Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, and Tehama and parts of Glenn, Nevada and Placer counties.

LaMalfa’s consultant said high Republican turnout for the primary indicated that the district, which has long been red, wouldn’t be changing its colors anytime soon.

“He feels very confident that the district will continue to vote for conservative representation,” Gilliard said. “Republicans outperformed registration numbers. (That) indicates that the district is firmly in Republican hands.”