Democrats have momentum in state Senate fundraising - Richmond Times-Dispatch: Virginia Politics
Fundraising is important. Obviously, political candidates need funds to operate a campaign. However, it should never overshadow a politicians' requirement to be truly connected with their constituents. It is easy to fall into the trap of the fundraising race and all media outlets have a tendency to focus on these numbers. To know the amounts that candidates have raised is an interesting bit of trivia. However, it really doesn't provide a substantive story. Who the money comes from is more important. Whether liberal or conservative, tracing the donations/ donors to political campaigns gives the light necessary for transparency. My hope is that articles such as this one will have follow ups. It is not inconceivable that the make up of a campaign's donors/ donations may reflect that campaign candidate's future decisions as an elected official. In addition, past elections have shown that winning the money race doesn't translate winning an political office. For me, how much money someone raises in a campaign isn't as important as who they may be indebted to once in office.
