Last week second-quarter campaign finance reports were due to the Federal Elections Commission. In Minnesota all eyes were on the Third Congressional District contest for retiring Rep. Jim Ramstad’s seat. The western suburban district, although represented by a Republican since 1961, is potentially fertile territory for both parties. Democrat Amy Klobuchar took 56 percent of the vote in her successful 2006 Senate run, while Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty carried the district by a robust 53-40 margin that same year. In 2004 President Bush carried the district by three points, almost a perfect inverse of the results statewide. The Cook Partisan Voting Index rates the district +1 for the GOP.


With no incumbent running, this means that scads of money will be poured into the race from across the country. Republican Erik Paulsen was first out of the gate with his second-quarter totals, reporting an impressive $621,000 raised and $1.1 million cash on hand at the end of June. But Democrat Ashwin Madia (pictured), who had lagged behind in the dollar chase owing to a tough DFL endorsement battle with state Sen. Terri Bonoff, was not to be outdone. After seemingly suggesting to reporters that the numbers wouldn’t impress, Madia announced that he had raised $693,000 during the three-month span and had $738,000 in the bank.


Combined the two candidates took in $1.3 million during the three-month span. To put that figure in perspective, the six major-party contestants in Minnesota’s three other seriously contested House races raised a total of roughly $1.8 million. (David Dillon, who is running as an Independence Party candidate in the Third took in just $16,366 in the second quarter.) A closer look at the FEC filings reveals some interesting characteristics about how the two candidates raised these huge piles of cash.


Not surprisingly Madia received significant support from organized labor. Unions were split between Madia and Bonoff prior to the DFL endorsing convention in March, with Service Employees International Union backing the former and AFSCME working for the latter. But clearly organized labor is now squarely behind Madia. Unions and their affiliated political action committees have contributed nearly $170,000 to his campaign so far – or more than 10 percent of the total raised through June.


Support from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has also been key. In April the organization placed Madia on its “red to blue” list of targeted races, and DCCC chairman Chris Van Hollen visited Minnesota in May to stump for the challenger and raise money. The result of this assistance: nearly $60,000 has been funnelled to Madia’s campaign via the national organization.


Madia has also successfully tapped the so-called netroots to support his campaign. Contributions made through ActBlue, an-line political action committee, currently total roughly $275,000. The next highest total for a Minnesota Democrat: $11,980 for Rep. Tim Walz. Among the 23 groups registered to raise money on Madia’s behalf at ActBlue are “Help Send These Vets to Congress!” and “Kashmiri Voices Being Heard.”


As that latter name suggests, it’s clear that Madia has purposefully reached out to Indian-American donors across the country. Common Indian surnames abound on the list of contributors, many from New York or California. Kanwal Rekhil, for instance, an Indian-born Silicon Valley venture capitalist, has given the maximum $4,600 to the campaign, while Harish Sujan, a marketing professor at Tulane University has contributed a more modest $225 to the effort.


There are also some interesting individuals on Madia’s list of second-quarter contributors. Robert Pohlad, CEO of PepsiAmericas and son of Twins owner Carl Pohlad, has contribute $2,300 to the Madia campaign. Pohlad’s political giving has generally schewed Republican, and he provided the maximum $4,600 to retiring Rep. Jim Ramstad during this election cycle, but he has not made a donation to the Paulsen campaign.


Other notable Madia givers: Goonies director Richard Donner ($300) and former U.S. attorney David Lillehaug ($250).


Erik Paulsen’s list of contributors, by contrast, is almost entirely made up of Minnesotans. Just 44 out of 618 second-quarter contributions came from individuals living outside the state. Minnesota’s top business executives are well represented on the list. Cargill CEO Gregory Page cut a $2,000 check, while Timberwolves owner and former Republican state senator Glen Taylor kicked in $1,000.


Further down the corporate hierarchy, car-sales king Denny Hecker contributed $1,000, while David Frauenshuh and his wife have chipped in a total of $7,100. Frauenshuh is the developer who parlayed the publicly-backed development of the Lawson Commons building in downtown St. Paul during then-Mayor Norm Coleman’s administration into a nifty $30 million profit.


Another close friend of Norm who’s been making headlines lately also chipped in to Paulsen’s campaign. Jeff Larson, the Republican operative and principal of FLS Connect who’s currently renting Coleman a basement apartment in Washington, D.C., cut a $1,500 check for the campaign.


But one corporation in particular seems enamored with the Paulsen campaign: Xcel Energy. Some 20 executives from the Denver-based energy company made donations in the second quarter. So far these individuals have given a total of $13,350 to the cause. Xcel Energy’s political action committee also chipped in with a $2,000 contribution.