Four weeks from today, the 2024 election will be over, except for the counting (and the legal challenges, etc.). That’s the good news.
The bad news: That means 28 more days of political ads, especially regarding the Congressional District 41 race, which is shaping up to be one of the closest competitions in the country—and one of the most expensive in California’s history.
A September poll by the University of Southern California, California State University Long Beach, and Cal Poly Pomona of six competitive California congressional races showed that incumbent Republican Ken Calvert and Democratic challenger Will Rollins were dead-even, with each getting 46.1 percent. The pollsters observed: “In CA-41, Republican Ken Calvert is the only incumbent underperforming the GOP candidates at the top of the ticket (former President Donald Trump and U.S. Senate candidate Steve Garvey). Will Rollins is tied 46.1%-46.1% with Calvert because Rollins has consolidated Democratic voters in CA-41 and is peeling off a small but significant number of Rollins-Garvey voters.”
Since the Calvert-Rollins race could very well decide which party takes control of Congress later this year—Republicans currently hold a eight-seat advantage—both campaigns are taking in massive amounts of money.
Rollins’ campaign told the Independent it had brought in more than $3.6 million in the third quarter, bringing the campaign’s total receipts to more than $10.6 million. The campaign noted that no challenger to an incumbent had ever raised more money in California’s history (not counting self-funded campaigns).
“Supporters across California’s 41st and folks across the country know that our district is one of the best chances to take back the House and fight for our freedoms,” Rollins said in a statement to the Independent. “I’m grateful for the support and I look forward to finishing the job in less than 30 days. … We need change in Riverside County, and we need new leadership that has the courage to put people before politics and profit.”
The Calvert campaign had not responded to an emailed request for third-quarter fundraising information as of this story’s deadline. As of June 30, Calvert’s campaign reported total receipts of about $5.8 million, compared to Rollins’ $7 million as of the mid-year filing date. Third-quarter fundraising reports are due to the Federal Election Commission on Oct. 15.
Calvert, who has been in Congress for 32 years, and Rollins also ran against each other for the Congressional District 41 seat in 2022. Calvert won by 11,100 votes out of 236,638 total votes cast.
Counties have started mailing ballots to California voters, which means voting is more or less under way—and given the crazy amounts of money being spent on the election, Californians need to brace themselves for an onslaught of advertising over the next 28 days.
While Rollins has publicly challenged Calvert to debates, Calvert has thus far refused. To learn more about Calvert and Rollins, click here to read our 2022 Candidate Q&A, which covers immigration policy, LGBTQ issues and more.