Horne, Rotellini break the bank in AG primaries

Tom Horne and Felecia Rotellini were feeling the financial pinch after their hard-fought primary wins in the attorney general’s race.

Horne, the Republican nominee, reported just $575 in cash on hand at the end of the last campaign finance reporting period on Sept. 13, according to a recent finance report. Rotellini, the Democratic nominee, had just $35,000 on hand at the end of the period.

Horne wouldn’t say how much he’s raised since the end of the reporting period, or whether he has put more of his own money into his campaign. The two-term state superintendent spent $639,000 on his campaign through mid-September, including $300,000 he loaned to his campaign.

“As you can tell from history, I’m able to raise money when I need to,” Horne said.

Rotellini spokesman Evan Brown also wouldn’t say how much the campaign has raised since the end of the last reporting period. Rotellini, the former head of the Arizona Department of Financial Institutions, has raised about $419,000, but spent about $370,000 in the Democratic primary.

“We’re not going to discuss specific campaign strategies, but we are going to stay competitive,” Brown said.

Neither would say whether they planned to run television commercials for the early-voting period, which begins Oct. 7. Horne ran a robust TV ad campaign during his primary battle against former Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, but said he doesn’t know yet whether he’ll be on the air soon against Rotellini.

“I’m not being coy. We really haven’t made the decision,” he said.

Both candidates narrowly won their primaries. Horne beat Thomas by fewer than 1,000 votes after a grueling campaign that was defined by the candidates’ constant attacks, while Rotellini edged out Rep. David Lujan, the House Minority Leader, by about 2,400 votes.