Curtis Bashaw, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in New Jersey, gave his own campaign more than $1.2 million in the second fundraising quarter of 2024 and raised another $328,000 from donors; he’ll head into the general election season with a warchest of just under $1.1 million.
Since launching his campaign in January, Bashaw, a hotel developer from South Jersey, has raised a total of nearly $2.7 million, $1.8 million of which came from his own pockets – a major sum for a Republican running statewide in New Jersey.
“The campaign is excited about the momentum behind Curtis as a different kind of Republican candidate who stands out from the status quo Democrat career politicians that have failed NJ families for too long,” said Jeanette Hoffman, a spokesperson for Bashaw’s campaign. “We have a robust fundraising calendar over the next couple of weeks that includes financial commitments from Republicans, Independents and Democrats alike.”
Last month, Bashaw defeated Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner 45%-38% in the Republican primary for Senate. Serrano Glassner had a crucial endorsement from former President Donald Trump, but Bashaw had the support of a majority of the state’s county GOP organizations, and also had far more money than Serrano Glassner.
Bashaw’s victory came at a cost, though; he’s reported spending nearly $1.6 million since his campaign launched, money that won’t be able to go towards his general election fight against Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown).
Kim, for his part, raised $2 million in Q2 – much of which went unspent, since Kim didn’t face a serious primary challenge for the Democratic Senate nomination. The congressman has more than $4 million on-hand heading into the general election.
One other wild card is incumbent Senator Bob Menendez, who didn’t run in the Democratic primary but has filed as an independent. Menendez hasn’t released his second quarter fundraising numbers yet; as of May 15, he had $3.6 million on-hand, though that money is getting depleted fast as he fights federal corruption charges in court.
The last time Menendez’s seat was up, in 2018, Republicans ran a different self-funding Republican – one whose investments were substantially greater than Bashaw’s have been thus far. Bob Hugin, now the New Jersey GOP state chairman, had invested $15.5 million of his own money by the end of Q2 2018; he ultimately put $36 million into the race, which he lost to Menendez 54%-43%.
Bashaw’s fundraising reports this year also list some notable donors besides himself: former Gov. Chris Christie, who tacitly supported Bashaw during the primary; former U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross; and State Sen. Jon Bramnick (R-Westfield), a 2025 gubernatorial candidate who originally supported Serrano Glassner in the GOP primary.