State Sen. Dick Day and Lake Crystal School Board Member Mark Meyer are on opposite ends of the fundraising race in the 1st District congressional campaign.

Even so, Day and Meyer agree that Republican voters aren’t putting a lot of weight on fundraising prowess as they try to decide which of four GOP contenders is the best choice to take on freshman Democratic Congressman Tim Walz of Mankato a year from now.

“I don’t think so,” said Day, who had collected more donations than his three Republican opponents combined — as of the last federal contributions report on Sept. 30. “The people out in Washington, D.C., they look at it and say ‘Oh, I think he’d be a good candidate because he can raise a lot of money. ... I think the people (in southern Minnesota) are more interested in the issues.”

Meyer, who had raised $10,000 as of Sept. 30 compared to Day’s $123,000, said the Republican activists who will decide on March 29 who to endorse to run against Walz are just trying to get to know the candidates and their stances on a variety of topics. Having the most money at this stage doesn’t prove that a candidate is the best choice to take on Walz, he said.

“It proves you’re good at raising money,” Meyer said. “... I’m not in this for money or about money, and I think it would be a shame if that’s what determines the election.”

The Republican challenger will be facing a distinct disadvantage in the general election if they aren’t adept fundraisers, because Walz is. As a first-time candidate against a formidable six-term incumbent in Republican Rep. Gil Gutknecht in 2006, Walz managed to raise well over $1 million and nearly matched Gutknecht dollar for dollar.

In fundraising for the upcoming election, Walz already has tallied nearly $950,000 and has $711,000 sitting in his campaign treasury. Day had $80,000 in cash at the end of the reporting period, along with $23,000 in debts. Meyer had just over $3,000 remaining.

Second to Day among the foursome vying for the GOP endorsement is Brian Davis, a Mayo Clinic physician who had $74,000 in cash on hand — including more than $38,000 he personally contributed to the campaign. In third place was state Rep. Randy Demmer of Hayfield who has $56,000 on hand along with $20,000 in debts.

But Day notes that his total in the first three quarters of the year are more than Walz raised in 2005, the year prior to his upset victory over Gutknecht. Walz totaled $118,000 that year when he was a little-known Mankato West High School teacher who many political experts considered the Democrats’ sacrificial lamb against Gutknecht.

“We’re going to double or triple what he did the first year,” Day predicted.

Day said he’s been campaigning hard, attending parades and meeting average voters along with trying to line up delegates for the Republican endorsement. He suggested his ability to outperform his Republican opponents in fundraising comes in part from experience and practice, having raised money for GOP candidates during nearly a decade as leader of the state Senate Republican Caucus.

“I guess it’s probably easier for me than the rest of them, I’ve been doing it for nine years as a caucus leader,” said Day, who added he’d prefer that campaigns be less focused on asking for donations. “... I always thought in lower politics, they should give everybody $10,000 and a new pair of shoes and say ‘Here you go.’”

Meyer laughed about the money-grubbing aspect of his first congressional race.

“My general impression? It’s a pain, of course,” he said. “(But) it’s a part of the process whether we like it or not.”

Once a challenger for Walz is selected, Meyer expects Republican donors to be more free with their donations.

“People want to put their money on the winner,” he said.

He remains confident he will have the minimal amount of money needed to win the endorsement.

“I really believe in the power of ideas and the power of people to make a difference,” Meyer said. “And we’ll be able to run an effective campaign without spending the most money.”