Kim Reynolds’ campaign touts fundraising record of $1.3 million in 2019

Gov. Kim Reynolds said her re-election campaign raised more than $1.3 million in 2019. The campaign claimed it was the most raised by a candidate in the year immediately following an election.

Reynolds, a Republican and the state's first female governor, was elected to her first full, four-year term in 2018. She ascended to the office from lieutenant governor in 2017 when former Gov. Terry Branstad resigned to become U.S. ambassador to China.

Reynolds, who would not face re-election until 2022, has nearly $900,000 on hand in her campaign account, according to the campaign.

'It's an opportunity of a lifetime to serve and give back to a state that's given so much to my family and me,” Reynolds said in a statement issued by her campaign. 'With low unemployment and a fiscally responsible budget, Iowa Republicans continue to lead the charge with bold ideas to keep Iowa moving, and we're just getting started. Because of generous supporters in our communities large and small, urban and rural, we will push forward and make Iowa even better than it is today.”

The previous high-water mark for gubernatorial fundraising in the year following an election was Democrat Chet Culver's $1.1 million haul in 2007, according to the Reynolds campaign.

Off-year fundraising reports for state office in Iowa are due Jan. 19.