-------- Forwarded Message --------
From: Elaine Luria for Congress
Subject: [Internal] Campaign Memo
Date: Fri, Nov 26
Hi all,
New concerns are arising as we grapple with Republican Glenn Youngkin’s gubernatorial win and Republican wins down the ballot.
There are three major concerns moving forward -- setting the record straight on attack ads leveraged against Elaine, competing with her Republican opponents’ fundraising, and responding to the third-most powerful House Republican endorsing Jen Kiggans.
Attack Ads. A group aligned with the GOP spent $2 million in attack ads prior to the House vote on the Build Back Better Act, in an attempt to pressure Democrats into backing down from voting for the social spending bill. One of the Democrats they targeted was Elaine.
Elaine was not intimidated by the first wave of attack ads, so we are expecting that this group will spend more money flooding the airwaves with misinformation about Elaine and the legislation that she supports.
What do we do about it? First, Elaine is not going to dignify these attack ads with a response -- we don’t want to amplify their rhetoric or lies any further. We will, however, be ramping up fundraising to amplify our own TV, radio, and email campaigns in order to set the record straight. We’ll also strengthen our grassroots organizing efforts by training volunteers to lead canvassing and phonebanking sessions.
Republican Fundraising. Elaine currently has five Republican opponents vying for her seat, but two stand out -- Jen Kiggans and Jarome Bell. Reports indicate that fundraising numbers for Kiggans and Bell are neck and neck, and Elaine is outraising both of them so far.
But with GOP endorsements coming in and the Republican primary just a few months away, soon there will only be one Republican challenger. That means by the time the general election rolls around, our fundraising numbers will be a lot closer -- and Republicans are feeling confident about reclaiming Elaine’s seat after Glenn Youngkin’s gubernatorial victory.
What do we do about it? We’re going to continue fundraising aggressively in order to outpace our opponents and take advantage of the crowded Republican primary field. Right now, we have a sizable lead. And we need to grow our lead in order to show our opponents and national Republican groups at every FEC deadline that we have the resources that it takes to keep this seat blue.
Opponent endorsements. Our final concern is that U.S. House Republican Caucus Chair Elise Stefanik just endorsed Jen Kiggans. She is the third-ranking member of the House. This will bring Kiggans attention from other national Republicans, boosting her name ID, and also bring in an influx of cash from folks who trust Stefanik and see her endorsement as something positive.
What do we do about it? Kiggans is not yet the nominee, but we still want to be prepared. Last cycle, national Republicans spent $3 million against Elaine, and she is in one of the most vulnerable seats in Congress.
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