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By Daniel Strauss | 07/06/2017 10:00 AM EDT


With Elena Schneider and Burgess Everett

The following newsletter is an abridged version of Campaign Pro's Morning Score. For an earlier morning read on exponentially more races - and for a more comprehensive aggregation of the day's most important campaign news - sign up for Campaign Pro today. (http://www.politicopro.com/proinfo)

FULL STEAM AHEAD - Hatch raised $1M in second quarter: Orrin Hatch turned 83 earlier this year and still has not made a final decision on whether to run for his 8th term. But the Utah senator is still raising money in case he does and still has an imposing warchest that could scare off any Republicans still eyeing his seat. (Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman, Jr. have been discussed as potential successorsl) Hatch raised $1 million in the second quarter and has $4.1 million on hand, according to numbers first provided to POLITICO. He raised about $1.5 million in the first quarter. The Senate Finance chairman seems unlikely to make a final decision until the GOP's agenda shakes out further.

HOUSE Q2 FUNDRAISING - FIRST IN SCORE - CA-45: Democrat Dave Min, who's one of three looking to take on GOP Rep. Mimi Walters next year, raised over $303,000 in the second quarter and has about a quarter-million dollars in the bank.

- FIRST IN SCORE - AZ-02: Democrat Matt Heinz (who is running for GOP Rep. Martha McSally's seat but may face ex-Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick in a primary) raised $200,000 in the last two weeks in his repeat bid against McSally. In a statement, the campaign touted Heinz's average donation as $15.

- CA-10: Democrat Josh Harder announced raising over $400,000 and finishing the second quarter with $370,000 in the bank in GOP Rep. Jeff Denham's district.

- CA-48: Democrat Phil Janowicz's campaign announced raising over $180,000 since he jumped into the race in April.

- NY-19: Democratic Army veteran Pat Ryan, part of the crowded Democratic field to take on GOP Rep. John Faso, announced raising over $210,000 in the second quarter, after jumping into the race in June.

- NM-01: Democrat Antoinette Sedillo Lopez's campaign announced raising over $200,000 in Q2. (Democratic Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham is running for governor.)

VET VISIT - "Democrats Court Military Veterans in Effort to Reclaim House," by The New York Times' Emmarie Huetteman: "Democratic Party leaders are aggressively seeking former members of the military in hopes of increasing their appeal among the sort of frustrated voters who electedPresident Trump - and winning back the 24 seats they need to regain the Republican-controlled House...In many cases, those veterans say they feel called to run for public office in response to Mr. Trump himself, whose policies they see as a threat to the country's values and security...In addition to the nearly 20 veterans who have announced they are running as Democrats in Republican-held House districts, about
15 more are expected to make announcements by the end of the summer, according to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee." Full story.

- FOR EXAMPLE - In IL-12 this morning: St. Clair's County State's Attorney Brendan Kelly, a Democrat, is announcing his campaign for Congress. According to a release from his campaign: "Kelly, a prosecutor, Navy veteran, and proud father of two, said people in Southern Illinois and throughout the country are right to be frustrated with a government that hasn't worked for their best interests for a generation."

- In IL-13: Betsy Dirksen Londrigan is announcing her campaign for Congress as well. Per a release from Londrigan's campaign this morning: "I knew I had to run when Congressman Davis cheered and celebrated with Donald Trump on the White House lawn after passing a healthcare bill that could devastate our district." IL-12 was drawn in 2011 to preserve then-Rep. Jerry Costello's district, but he retired and Democrats held it with trouble in 2012 and lost it in 2014 and 2016. In IL-13, GOP Rep. Rodney Davis survived a close race in 2012, his first campaign, and has since held the seat more comfortably.

SENATE WATCH - In addition to Rep. Kevin Cramer, state Sen. Tom Campbell and former Rep. Rick Berg, keep an eye out for State Board of Higher Education member Kathy Neset, reports Rob Port of the SayAnything blog.

- And in NV-03: Republican state Sen. Scott Hammond filed FEC papers to run for Democratic Rep. Jacky Rosen's seat, with Rosen running for Senate, the Las Vegas Review Journal reports.

Days until the 2017 election: 124.

Days until the 2018 election: 488.

Thanks for joining us. You can email tips to the Campaign Pro team at sbland@politico.com, eschneider@politico.com, krobillard@politico.com and dstrauss@politico.com.

You can also follow us on Twitter: @politicoscott, @ec_schneider, @politicokevin and @danielstrauss4.

GUBERNATORIAL FUNDRAISING - Georgia: Republican Secretary of State Brian Kemp raised $1.7 million in the March-to-June fundraising period, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported. State Sen. Hunter Hill's "campaign said hehas raised more than $1 million during the March-to-June fundraising period. [Lt. Gov. Casey] Cagle is likely to top the $1 million mark as well,"

- Florida: Republican Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam has raised over $2 million in each of the last two months, FloridaPolitics.com reported. (Meanwhile, so did a committee formed by GOP state House Speaker Richard Corcoran.)

THAT'S...AN ARGUMENT - All the rage on Twitter Wednesday: A DCCC fundraising email sent that offered recipients the opportunity to vote for which sticker the committee should print for supporters next. One choice out of four: "Democrats: 2018, I mean have you seen the other guys?" A few journalists snarked that the slogan isn't exactly inspiring.

- "Dems' new pitch to voters: A 'Better Deal,'" by POLITICO's Elana Schor and Heather Caygle: "Democratic leaders are zeroing in on a new mantra for their long-promised economic agenda: a 'Better Deal.' The rebranding attempt comes as Democrats acknowledge that simply running against President Donald Trump wasn't a winning strategy in 2016 and probably won't work in 2018 either. The slogan, which is still being polled in battleground House districts, aims to convince voters that Democrats have more to offer than the GOP and the self-proclaimed deal-maker in the White House. ... Several moderate Democrats facing reelection next year told POLITICO that no matter what leadership does, they're
preparing to craft their own pitch to voters. The ideological and political divides that gripped the party during the Hillary Clinton-Bernie Sanders primary wars are far from healed, and leadership may not find universal support for the left-leaning platform, particularly from those trying to defend seats in Trump-friendly states." Full story.

STAFFING UP - FIRST IN SCORE - FP1 Strategies' Lauren Zelt is signing on as campaign manager for Independent Women's Voice, a 501(c)(4), per a release obtained by Score. The group describes itself as "the thought leader advocating for free-market policies, which support and improve the lives of all women and their families, and explaining how big government often backfires on American society." In a statement, IWV president and CEO Heather Higgins described Zelt as "a knowledgeable and experienced communicator who will help us bring information to new audiences on critical policy issues, like health care, regulations, and taxes." Zelt serves as a senior vice president at FP1.

REDISTRICTING WATCH - Maryland AG argues Republicans not harmed in redistricting case, by the Baltimore Sun's John Fritze: "Attorney General Brian E. Frosh asked a federal court Friday to dismiss a lawsuit that claims state lawmakers violated Republicans' constitutional rights when they redrew Maryland's congressional boundaries six years ago. The state's response in the redistricting case - the first since the litigation forced several state Democrats to explain under oath the motivation behind Maryland's contorted congressional districts - asserts the plaintiffs have offered no evidence voters were targeted simply because they are registered Republicans. ... Brought by a group of GOP
voters in the 6th Congressional District, the case is one of several pending in federal courts that rely on new legal arguments to challenge the constitutionality of political gerrymandering. ... The plaintiffs contend the map violated the First Amendment by retaliating against people who voted Republican." Full story.

THE SILICON VALLEY WAY - "Mark Pincus and Reid Hoffman are launching a new group to rethink the Democratic Party," by Recode's Tony Romm: "Mark Pincus and Reid Hoffman want to hack the Democratic Party. ...Pincus, the co-founder of Zynga, and Hoffman, the brains behind LinkedIn, want to force Democrats to rewire their philosophical core, from their agenda to the way they choose candidates in elections ... That's the guiding principle behind Win the Future, a new project by the tech duo that's launching in time for July 4. ...Think of WTF as equal parts platform and movement. Its new website will put political topics up for a vote - and the most resonant ideas will form the basis of the
organization's orthodoxy. To start, the group will query supporters on two campaigns: Whether or not they believe engineering degrees should be free to all Americans, and if they oppose lawmakers who don't call for Trump's immediate impeachment." Full story.

VOTER FRAUD FIGHT- "Kris Kobach defends election commission voter data request," by POLITICO's Maddie Conway: Kris Kobach, the vice chair of President Donald Trump's controversial election integrity commission, defended the committee's request for state voter roll data on Wednesday and dismissed reporting about it as "fake news." The commission, which is tasked with investigating cases of alleged voter fraud, came under criticism from dozens of state officials last week when it asked states to provide it with voter roll data, including details as personal as the last four digits of registered voters' Social Security numbers. The commission indicated that it planned to publish the
data...Responding to news reports that 44 states had declined to cooperate with the commission's request, Kobach called that figure "patently false, more 'fake news'" and said 14 states and D.C. had done so, while 36 others "either agreed or are considering participating," with 20 of those agreeing outright." Full story.

ADMINISTRATION SPEED READ - "Trump looks for a lovefest in Poland," by POLITICO's Michael Crowley: "The story of President Donald Trump's early relationship with Europe is already a tortured one. But that's not true in Poland, where Trump enjoys a sort of political kinship. Warsaw's right-wing Law and Justice party rose to power as its officials manipulated the news media, threatened judicial independence, refused to accept refugees and stoked ethnic nationalism...It's still possible Trump's visit here won't be the lovefest the Polish government is betting on: Trump may praise the former Polish President Lech Wa\u0142\u0119sa, a harsh critic of the Law and Justice party's governing style, who may be
seated in the audience Thursday. But few observers expect a full-fledged rebuke." Full story.

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "As I sit here today, there hasn't been anything presented to me that would alleviate that concern" - Gov. Brian Sandoval on his opposition to Senate Republicans' healthcare bill, via The Las Vegas Review-Journal.

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