Merkley campaign predicts 'best quarter ever'

The mood at House Speaker and current U.S. Senate candidate Jeff Merkley's (D-Portland) headquarters on Monday was enthusiastic in the midst of its final fund raising push to close out the second fundraising quarter of the year.

"We expect to have our best quarter ever," campaign spokesman Matt Canter said. "People around Oregon and around the country are seeing how vulnerable Gordon Smith is, and we are gaining tremendous momentum."

Merkley will need that momentum if he is to close the massive fundraising gap between his campaign and Smith's. The first quarter report, which covered January 1, 2008 to March 31, 2008, showed that Merkley collected $1,609,848 in contributions and had $151,657 cash-on-hand. His rival, Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Pendleton) boasted of $4,731,406 in total contributions and had $4,882,436 cash-on-hand at the end of the first quarter.

But while Merkley's camp is the underdog in the money race, Canter said that funds spent earlier this year were put to good use.

"We certainly spent significant resources in the primary trying to introduce Jeff to the voters," Canter said. "But this turned into an advantage because we got to introduce Jeff with a positive message while Gordon Smith was attacking."

In its Lake Oswego headquarters, Smith's campaign had the Senator send out a personal email to his supporters in hopes that they will match Merkley's financial surge.

"We're confident in our fundraising abilities," campaign spokeswoman Lindsay Gilbride said. "We've had very strong fund raising so far, and we see every indication that it will continue."

The last Rasmussen Reports poll had Smith leading Merkley 47 to 38 percent. While a comfortable cushion, it is a much narrower margin than Smith won in his last bid for re-election, when he defeated Democrat Bill Bradbury 56 percent to 40 percent.