Liz Cheney Raises Majority of Money from Donors Outside Wyoming

Democrat-allied Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) has raked in the majority of her campaign contributions from out-of-state donors, according to Open Secrets.

Cheney’s out-of-state contributions totaled $2.94 million in the first quarter of 2022, Politico Playbook reported. Cheney has raised a total of $10 million and has spent more than $3 million. She has $6.8 million cash on hand. But the majority of her contributions came from donors outside Wyoming in the 2022 election cycle, according to Open Secrets.

Cheney’s out-of-state donors have given the representative a fundraising lead over her Trump-endorsed opponent Harriet Hageman, who has raised $745,000 in 2021 and “over $1.3 million in the first quarter of 2022” according to CBS News.

Cheney’s out-of-state donors are coming from states all over the nation. Texas donors took the number one slot with $556,430. California came in second with $541,880. Virginian donors gave $466,000, with other states, such as Florida ($450,370), New York ($408,290), and Connecticut ($215,600), notching top spots.

The out-of-state donations suggest Cheney’s political interests rest outside of Wyoming voters’. Cheney’s money flow seems to match her political priorities of opposing America First policies and allying herself with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s January 6 Committee.

As a result, the Wyoming race has become a proxy war between establishment and conservative Republicans.

While Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), George Bush, Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), and Dick Cheney support Liz Cheney, defenders of America First policies are backing Hageman. Those supporting Hageman include House minority leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Reps. Jim Jordan (R-OH), Jim Banks (R-IN), Elise Stefanik (R-NY), South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R), former president Donald Trump, and Republican megadonor Peter Thiel.

Cheney has taken heat from Hageman for serving the interests of the establishment over those in Wyoming. “Liz Cheney has lost Wyoming. Liz Cheney doesn’t live in Wyoming. She doesn’t represent us,” Hageman said. “She doesn’t represent our values.”

Cheney, who is rarely seen in Wyoming, charged Wyoming residents $10 for admission to an event last month. During the event, Cheney reportedly only answered pre-selected questions, perhaps to avoid the ire of Wyoming voters.

“Can you believe it? Charging for a ticket! It’s a slap in the face,” a Wyoming voter told Politico in response to the event. “We have one person representing us … and she shows up in town and it costs $10 to see her. It’s embarrassing.”

In recent months, the Wyoming GOP voted to no longer recognize Cheney as a Republican, and she was censured by the Republican National Committee (RNC) as well. She also lost a straw poll to Hageman, which Cheney called “laughable.”

In an interview with the New York Times, Hageman said Cheney’s lack of Republican support among Republicans is due to “using her seat as Wyoming’s representative to pursue her own agenda.”

“That’s not our agenda. We don’t agree with what Liz Cheney is doing,” she said.

The Wyoming primary is on August 16.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify the fundraising numbers for the 2022 election cycle.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter and Gettr @WendellHusebø

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