Cooper Campaign Sitting on More Than $5.6 Million for Reelection Bid

RALEIGH – Fundraising comes a bit easier when you’re an incumbent. At least that is what Governor Roy Cooper is finding as he raises money for his 2020 reelection campaign.

The Cooper campaign announced Monday that they have raised more than $4.5 million through the first six months of 2019, and now have a total war chest of $5.6 million. That’s about twice as much as Cooper raised through the same point in his first bid for governor in 2016, and evidence that those already in power command more support from political interests looking to maintain that control, and and special interests taking care to be in the good graces of the Old North State’s power structure.

Official campaign finance reports are not due until July 26. At that point we should be able to compare the totals of Cooper, Republican 2020 contender Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, and whoever else enters the race between now and then.

We’re still waiting for the expected campaign launch of Republican N.C. House member Holly Grange. Initial rumors were of a July 15 launch to challenge presumptive Republican front runner Forest in a 2020 primary, yet the date came and went with no such announcement.

Cooper narrowly won his 2016 race against then-incumbent Republican Governor Pat McCrory, despite then-presidential candidate Donald Trump winning the state, and Republicans maintaining a super-majority in the General Assembly that year. He’ll deploy his campaign war chest to attempt another victory in 2020, but now he has a record as an obstructive, litigious, hard Left governor to defend against.