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By Maggie Severns | 04/19/2018 10:00 AM EDT


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)

CASH DASH - "Some people just can't be saved," by Pro Campaign's Elena Schneider: "House Republicans told themselves 2018 would be better after getting swamped by Democratic cash in 2017. But Republican incumbents are actually in worse financial shape now than at the end of last year.

"A whopping 43 House Republicans raised less money than Democratic challengers in the first three months of 2018. ... An overlapping group of 16 Republican incumbents already have less cash on hand than Democratic challengers. ... The fundraising totals are just the latest indicator of a November nightmare developing for Republicans: a toxic stew of poor presidential popularity, intense Democratic enthusiasm, and a chunk of incumbents whose FEC disclosures show they don't understand how much trouble they could be in. ...

"It's a mirror image of this time in 2010, seven months before Republicans picked up 63 House seats during President Barack Obama's first term. At this point in the 2010 election cycle, 35 Democratic incumbents were outraised by Republican challengers, and more than a third lost their races in November." Full story.

- "DCCC adds 5 House challengers to 'Red to Blue'," by Schneider: "The DCCC announced its fifth round of 'Red to Blue' candidates today, adding five House challengers to its program that indicates the committee's top-tier prospects in Republican-held seats. The committee is wading into one crowded California primary, backing Gil Cisneros out of a field of six Democrats vying to replace Republican Rep. Ed Royce. It also pits the committee against EMILY's List, which endorsed Mai Khanh Tran. The full list of newly added 'Red to Blue' candidates is: Clarke Tucker (AR-02), Cisneros (CA-39), Tom Malinowski (NJ-07) , Juanita Perez Williams (NY-24) and Ken Harbaugh (OH-07)." Full story.

UP ON AIR - "Uihlein-backed House Freedom Action jumps into OH-12 special," by Pro Campaign's Maggie Severns: "House Freedom Action, a new super PAC bankrolled in part by GOP megadonor Richard Uihlein, has started purchasing television airtime ahead of next month's Ohio special election primary. The super PAC has reserved at least $187,000 in airtime in the Columbus media market from April 19-29, according to Advertising Analytics, though that number could go up. There are 10 Republicans competing in the May 8 primary, where voters will choose nominees to compete in the August special election to replace former GOP Rep. Pat Tiberi in the 12th District. (Voters in May will also choose
nominees for the regular fall general election.) It's not yet clear which candidate House Freedom Action is backing." Full story.

Days until the 2018 election: 201

Upcoming election dates - AZ-08 special election: April 24 - Indiana, Ohio, North Carolina and West Virginia primaries: May 8 - Idaho, Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Oregon primaries: May 15 - Arkansas, Georgia and Kentucky primaries, plus Texas primary runoffs: May 22.

Upcoming filing deadlines - Michigan: April 24 - Florida: May 4 - Massachusetts: May 8 - Washington: May 18 - Arizona: May 30.

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

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

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POLL - "Poll: Cruz, O'Rourke in tight race," by POLITICO's Steven Shepard: "Sen. Ted Cruz has only a slight lead over Rep. Beto O'Rourke in the Texas Senate race, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday. The poll - the first survey Quinnipiac has conducted in Texas - shows Cruz leading O'Rourke, 47 percent to 44 percent. Eight percent of voters are undecided, and 1 percent would support another candidate. ...

"Cruz cuts a polarizing profile in Texas, the poll shows. Forty-six percent of voters view him favorably, while 44 percent have an unfavorable opinion of him. Only 10 percent say they don't know enough about Cruz to form an opinion." Full story.

- "Club for Growth poll: Rosendale leads Montana GOP Senate field," Shepard reports: "A poll in Montana commissioned by the conservative Club for Growth finds Club-endorsed state Auditor Matt Rosendale leading the GOP Senate primary, with more than twice the vote share of his closest competitor. The poll, conducted by WPA Intelligence from April 15-16, shows Rosendale with 40 percent among likely voters in the June 5 primary, well ahead of former state Rep. Russ Fagg, who is at 17 percent. Businessman Troy Downing is at 12 percent, and state Sen. Al Olszewski is at 8 percent. Nearly a quarter of likely voters, 23 percent, are undecided." Full story.

BUDDYING UP - "Corker Won't Campaign Against Democratic Ex-Governor Who Wants to Succeed Him," by Roll Call's Niels Lesniewski: "Sen. Bob Corker reiterated Wednesday that he has endorsed and maxed out on contributions to [Rep. Marsha Blackburn], but nonetheless lavished praise on [former Democratic Gov. Phil Bredesen]. The two men worked together in various capacities in Tennessee politics, including while working to bring the then-Houston Oilers NFL team to Nashville, as well as while Bredesen was governor and Corker was mayor of Chattanooga. 'We had clandestine meetings at my home,' Corker said of their work with Volkswagen executives to lure the German auto giant to open facilities the
Volunteer State." Full story.

LONG WINTER - Leah Phifer says she won't run in MN-08: Leah Phifer announced on Wednesday she will not seek the Democrat Farmer-Labor nomination in Minnesota's 8th District, after the district's convention ended without an endorsement. "My goal, since first declaring my candidacy in October 2017, has always been to win the DFL endorsement, bring new voices to the table and strengthen the party," said Phifer in a statement. "A divisive primary season would only serve to weaken the party and distract from the issues affecting the people of the 8th District."

OFF MY LAWN - "Trump campaign rebukes Indiana candidate signs," by the Associated Press: "Donald Trump's re-election campaign has demanded that Rep. Todd Rokita take down yard signs it says give the false impression the president endorsed the Indiana Republican's Senate bid, two people with direct knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press. The rebuke came after two volunteers who led Trump's bare-bones 2016 campaign in Vice President Mike Pence's home state endorsed Rokita during an Indianapolis news conference last week. ... Rokita spokesman Nathan Brand refused to say if the campaign will comply with the Trump campaign's request. 'We do not comment on yard sign strategy,' Brand
said in a statement that reiterated the endorsement by the two volunteers." Full story.

EXTRA Q1 FUNDRAISING - "RAGA raised $5M in first quarter of 2018," by POLITICO's Daniel Strauss: "The Republican Attorneys General Association raised $5 million in the first quarter of 2018, bringing its total haul so far in the midterm cycle to $21 million, according to numbers obtained by POLITICO. The $21 million to date is $8.5 million more than the umbrella group for Republican attorneys general raised at the same point in the cycle in 2014." Full story.

- The Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC will no longer accept donations from corporate PACs, the group announced today. The PAC joins a growing number of candidates and groups making the same commitment.

MORE MORE MORE - "POLITICO Florida: Scott boosts TV spending to $3M with new Spanish-language ad," by POLITICO's Matt Dixon: "Gov. Rick Scott's campaign is dropping $1 million on a Spanish-language television ad, increasing the overall TV tab for his newly minted Senate campaign to $3 million, an eye-popping figure this early in the election cycle. Scott's campaign earlier put $2 million behind a statewide ad focused on his push for federal term limits, which has been his campaign's only early policy push." Full story.

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "We're not just going to rearrange the deck chairs around this place and keep doing the same stuff with different people," said Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.), a board member of the House Freedom Caucus, on the possibility of Rep. Kevin McCarthy becoming the next speaker of the House.

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