Hiral Tipirneni outraises Debbie Lesko as Arizona's CD8 race enters final stage

Democrat Hiral Tipirneni outraised Republican Debbie Lesko as their race for a vacant Arizona congressional seat entered its final stage, campaign finance records show.

Tipirneni built her modest financial advantage on the strength of small-dollar donors, who collectively provided her with more money than Lesko took in from all individuals.

Lesko closed much of the financial gap by raking in significantly more money from political-action committees and other special interests than Tipirneni, but had relatively little cash as of April 4, the cutoff for the report.

Trent Franks, the veteran Republican whose abrupt December resignation over sexual misconduct allegations created the vacancy in the 8th Congressional District, gave Lesko $2,700, the maximum permitted for the general election.

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Overall, Tipirneni raised $434,000 from all sources between Feb. 8 and April 4. Lesko raised $367,000 from all sources in the same period. Tipirneni ended the period with $125,000 on hand compared to $54,000 for Lesko.

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Republican groups, who have seen recent GOP losses in Alabama and rural Pennsylvania, have kicked in about $700,000 in outside spending to help boost Lesko in the conservative-leaning district. Outside Democratic groups have largely ignored the race, but a new group headed by activist Ady Barkan plans to spend "six figures" in the race's closing days.

In general, candidates' fundraising is closely watched as a sign of momentum in a race.

Daily tabulations of the early votes in the special election show ballots from registered Republicans far outnumber ballots from registered Democrats. Voting ends April 24 and past elections suggest most voters will likely have cast their ballot by this week.

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In a January debate among GOP primary candidates hosted by The Arizona Republic, Lesko offered an oblique rebuke to Franks, saying, "Obviously, sexual harassment is totally unacceptable, has to be fully investigated and people just need to respect each other, and then I think we'd all get along."

Among those who gave $200 or more, Lesko collected $116,000 after clinching the GOP nomination on Feb. 27. By comparison, Tipirneni took in $150,000 after winning the Democratic nomination.

Lesko reported taking in $109,000 from 110 donors in Arizona. Tipirneni reported $80,000 from 364 in-state donors.

In West Valley communities, such as Peoria, Glendale and Sun City, Tipirneni had a significant advantage among those who gave at least $200. Tipirneni raised at least $39,000 from 186 West Valley donors. Lesko raised $22,000 from 27 in the West Valley.

RELATED: Democrats aiming for an upset in Arizona CD8 special election

Lesko took in $207,000 from various Republican party committees and PACs. Lesko's PAC supporters include the Koch brothers, the prominent GOP benefactors; Pinnacle West, the corporate parent to the utility Arizona Public Service Co.; and a PAC linked to the leader of the House Freedom Caucus.

Tipirneni took in $25,000 from PACs. Among her donors, Tipirneni, a physician, collected from the labor union for food workers and a group that tries to elect scientists.

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