Jack Evans’ campaign war chest keeps growing.
Evans, the D.C. Council member who represents Foggy Bottom, has racked up more than $1 million since his campaign launched in June, more than any other mayoral candidate.
Evans has pulled in $251,363 since October, when he first inched ahead of the other candidates, according to financial disclosure reports released Tuesday.
“We feel very good. It was certainly a goal of ours to get there, and we got there. It’s important in our efforts,” Evans said in a phone interview Wednesday.
Second to Evans is Ward 4 Council member Muriel Bowser, who pulled in $211,323 and has raised about $920,304 overall. Bowser has more cash on hand than Evans, totaling about $756,000, which she can spend as the campaign heats up after the New Year.
Ward 6 Council Member Tommy Wells raised $100,583 this period.
Evans – the candidate with the strongest fundraising credentials over his two decades on the Council – added that his campaign does not have a goal for how much they hope to raise overall.
Evans also said that his campaign has collected more than 9,000 nominating signatures to put him on April’s closed primary ballot. The 12 Democratic mayoral hopefuls have until Jan. 2 to collect the 2,000 signatures necessary to appear on the ballot.
For the second filing period in a row, Evans also outspent the other candidates, recording expenditures of $164,273, which includes staff salaries, supplies, several hundred dollars worth of campaign materials and monthly rental payments of about $6,800 for his 14th Street office space.
About one week after he announced his reelection bid, Mayor Vincent Gray did not report any money raised or expenditures. Campaign manager Chuck Thies told The Hatchet that Gray will not officially launch his campaign until January.
“He has a lot of time and events that are booked already as mayor and he should do those things,” Thies said.
The fourth D.C. Council member in the Democratic primary race, Vincent Orange, reported raising $80,200 without spending any money. Former State Department official Reta Jo Lewis raised $35,818 this period, putting her total at more than $200,000.
Busboys and Poets owner Andy Shallal brought in $5,000.