In fundraising race, Bost is handily beating Democratic challenger Baricevic

In the 12th U.S. House District race, freshman incumbent Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, is easily winning over Democratic challenger C.J. Baricevic — at least when it comes to fundraising.

Bost reported raising $733,684 between Jan. 1 and June 30, and spending $194,013, with $566,965 cash on hand, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Baricevic, a lawyer and political newcomer from Belleville who will formally announce his bid for Congress on Monday, reported raising $84,950, spending $19,635, with $65,315 cash on hand.

The 12th House District runs south from Alton and covers the state’s 12 most southern counties, including Alexander County.

The bulk of Bost’s fundraising receipts came from a long list of business-related political action committees. The largest donors to Bost were the Farm Trust, for $12,684 on June 30, and Patriot Day 2015, which donated $12,158, according to the FEC records.

“I count myself blessed and humbled by the tremendous support I've received across Southern Illinois,” Bost said in a written statement. “I worked hard to ensure we have the resources necessary to win next November. Our strength is in more than just numbers on a balance sheet. It's about a coalition of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents coming together to change politics as usual in Washington, D.C. We have a ways to go, but I couldn't be prouder of how far we've come.”

Baricevic’s largest donors included himself, at $5,000; his father, John Baricevic, St. Clair County’s chief judge and former County Board chairman, at $5,400; current County Board Chairman Mark Kern, at $2,700; and a variety of other lawyers and judges, as well as a few others identified as retirees and counselors.

Robert Jones, a spokesman for the Baricevic campaign, predicted fundraising will pick up after his formal announcement Monday.

“We really haven’t done any fundraisers yet,” Jones said. “This is just from friends and people that know him very closely.”

In the 13th District, which includes parts of Madison County, and runs eastward through 12 other counties, ending in Champaign County, incumbent Rodney Davis, R-Taylorville, raised $891,081, spent $259,695 and has $757,724 cash on hand. Davis is running so far unopposed.

In the 15th House District, longtime incumbent John Shimkus, R-Collinsville, reported raising $693,325, spending $506,715 and having $1.2 million on hand. Shimkus also is running unopposed so far.

Finally, in the 2016 U.S. Senate race, incumbent Mark Kirk, R-Highland Park, appears to have a tough battle on his hands against Democratic challenger Tammy Duckworth, a disabled Army veteran of the war in Iraq.

Kirk, who missed time in office in 2014 due to a stroke, reported raising $1.04 million, spending $218,992, with nearly $2.9 million cash on hand.

Duckworth, who represents the 8th U.S. House District seat, just west of Chicago, reported raising $1.2 million, spending $4,183 and having nearly $1.2 million cash on hand, FEC records show.

This story was originally published July 20, 2015 at 11:38 AM with the headline "In fundraising race, Bost is handily beating Democratic challenger Baricevic."