U.S. Rep Susan Wild D-7th District.. (Photo courtesy Wild campaign)
U.S. Rep. Susan Wild (D-7th District) had her strongest fundraising quarter to date over the last three months, raising four times more than her Republican challenger state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-Lehigh).
Wild’s campaign raised $2.58 million from the beginning of July to the end of September, which is the second highest for all congressional candidates in Pennsylvania during Q3, only trailing Democratic candidate for the 10th Congressional District Janelle Stelson’s $2.85 million haul. Mackenzie’s campaign raised just over $585,000 over the last three months.
Wild’s campaign has now raised $7.66 million in the election cycle to date, while Mackenzie’s campaign has raised $1.26 million since announcing his candidacy for the seat in July 2023.
Wild’s campaign also significantly outspent Mackenzie and every other congressional candidate over the last three months. From the beginning of July to the end of September, Wild’s campaign spent $5.15 million, as Mackenzie’s campaign spent $645,000.
Wild also maintains sizable cash on hand edge over Mackenzie. She entered October with just under $930,000 cash on hand, while Mackenzie’s campaign began the month with slightly over $305,000.
Although Wild began the month with roughly $625,000 more than her challenger, she had larger cash on hand advantages at this point in the two previous election cycles. In Oct. 2022, her campaign had $1.57 million on hand entering the month of October, while Republican challenger Lisa Scheller had just under $545,000. In Oct. 2020, Wild’s campaign had $1.54 million on hand as Scheller’s campaign had $330,000.
Wild was first elected to Congress in 2018. She won by 2 points over Scheller in 2022 and by just under 4 points over her in 2020.
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has attempted to flip that seat the past few cycles and is aiming to do so again in November.
The Lehigh Valley-based congressional district is viewed as the best bellwether of the 17 seats in the state’s delegation.
A Muhlenberg College/Morning Call poll released on Oct. 11 showed Wild leading Mackenzie by 6 points, 51% to 45%, which is just within the poll’s 6% margin of error.
The Cook Political Report and Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a pair of national ratings outlets, rate the race for the 7th Congressional District as a “toss-up,” while Inside Elections describes the race as “tilt Democratic.”