It's true that Jim Hagedorn, the 2014 Republican candidate in Minnesota's First Congressional District, received a hundred of a percent more of the total vote in the First than Torrey received in Minnesota's Seventh, but Hagedorn also fancies that he was on par with Stewart Mills III as well.
In a thank you email, Hagedorn wrote:
We performed at par or better than the higher profile races in the 7th and 8th Districts, which were the focus of DC and St. Paul operatives and outside money. Rather incredibly, our campaign spent just $1.96 for every vote earned, as compared with $50 or more per vote in those other races, making this District a missed opportunity.
According to the unofficial results on the Minnesota Secretary of State's website, Hagedorn received 103,536 votes or 45.67 percent of the votes cast in the district. In the Seventh, Westrom received 45.66 percent or 109,952 of the votes cast in the Seventh.
While Hagedorn did a hair better than Westrom, it's a stretch to say that he performed on par with Stewart Mills III in Minnesota's Eighth. Mills received 47.11 percent of the vote in a three-way contest, garnering 125,357 votes.
Would have more spending have boosted Hagedorn's fortunes? Perhaps, but investment in Hagedorn's bid would likely have triggered spending on behalf of incumbent Walz, as was the case in 2010, when moderate Republican Randy Demmer came the closest to unseating the Mankato Democrat.
As the spending per voter increased, attention would have been directed to Hagedorn's flaws. We doubt his bid would have been lifted by this--and so the boast rings a bit hollow.
Photo: Jim Hagedorn, Facebook via Mother Jones.
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