Views of money, polls, and PACS
George Pataki – Source: Jim Cole/AP Images
In a more traditional election cycle, you might expect that a three-term Republican governor from a traditionally blue state would have a leg up on the competition. A résumé like that shows a willingness to work across party lines, an ability to capture voters on the left and right and a knack for winning tough elections.
But as the 2016 race keeps proving, this is no ordinary campaign. Former New York Gov. George Pataki is the most recent casualty in a crowded Republican field that has favored flashy outsiders over seasoned politicians.
In fact, Pataki joins four other former or current governors who have called it quits already: former Gov. Rick Perry, R-Texas; former Gov. Lincoln Chafee, D-R.I.; Gov. Scott Walker, R-Wis.; and Gov. Bobby Jindal, R-La., have all dropped out.
Rather amazingly, Pataki managed to hold on for almost eight months. That’s longer than Perry’s 14 weeks on the trail, despite better name recognition of the Texan, who was mounting his second White House bid. And Walker, originally thought to be a top contender, dropped out in mid September.
Even though he remained in the race longer, Pataki never got a foothold among voters. Data from RealClearPolitics shows Pataki hovered just below 1 percent for the entire time he was in the race. His polling numbers were so low, he missed the cutoff for even the undercard debate on Fox Business Network on Nov. 10.
With such low poll numbers, Pataki’s campaign had a hard time raising money. A super PAC supporting him managed to raise almost $860,000, and his official campaign brought in a little more than $409,000. Both committees spent virtually all of their funds. According to InsideGov tallies from the Federal Election Commission, the total of $1.27 million backing Pataki is significantly less — as in, $12.2 million less — than the average raised by the other presidential hopefuls.
As the visualization shows, Pataki’s fundraising haul put him right in between former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., and former Gov. Martin O’Malley, D-Md., both of whom are still in the race. O’Malley is in the middle of a snowy Iowa tour, at one point seeing a single voter at an event. And Santorum seems to be holding on until the bitter end, too. He recently told Fox News that he felt “like I did four years ago” when he scored a surprise win in the Iowa caucuses in the 2012 presidential primary.
While these two — and a handful of others not doing so hot in the polls or the money race — continue to hang on, Pataki opted to call it before New Year’s. With the Iowa caucuses fast approaching, this might end up being the last candidate to drop out before we head into the primary season.
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Posted on December 29, 2015 by Palmer Gibbs
