By Josh Kurtz, Elizabeth Shwe & Bennett Leckrone
Candidates for statewide office began rolling out their annual fundraising numbers in dramatic fashion Thursday, with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wes Moore reporting that he pulled in an eye-popping $4.8 million since entering the race last June.
Three other Democratic candidates for governor, Tom Perez, John B. King Jr. and Jon Baron, each surpassed $2 million in money raised over the past several months — figures that would be impressive in most election cycles but were blown out of the water this time by Moore’s haul.
Moore’s $4.8 million represents the most money raised by a first-time candidate for governor in Maryland history at this point in an election cycle. It is more than three times the highest total reported by a Democratic gubernatorial candidate at this fundraising deadline four years ago.