WASHINGTON — Lobbyists and business interests continue to pump money into Hawaii Congressman Ed Case’s political campaign, according to his latest filings with the Federal Election Commission.

Case, who’s not known as a prolific fundraiser, pulled in more than $78,000 in donations from April 1 to June 30, almost exclusively from political action committees representing corporations such as Amazon, Comcast and BAE Systems and other special interest groups affiliated with labor unions and the sugar industry.

Congressman Ed Case FAA Whistleblower Helicopters Press Conference
Hawaii Congressman Ed Case has less than $200,000 in cash on hand for his campaign. Kuʻu Kauanoe/Civil Beat/2020

Case himself has ties to Hawaii’s once-thriving sugar industry that is now all but extinct.

He also received a $1,000 donation from Blue Origin, which is Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ private space venture that last month auctioned off a seat on an upcoming space flight for $28 million.

The congressman is up for re-election in 2022 but at this point has yet to draw a challenger. A Civil Beat poll from May found that Case’s constituents in Hawaii’s 1st Congressional District, which represents urban Oahu, have a mostly positive view of him.

Since the beginning of the year, Case, who is a member of the House Appropriations Committee, has raised nearly $100,000 to support his campaign.

About 90% of these funds came from PACs, but Case also received thousands of dollars from a handful of lobbyists representing a range of industries, including defense. The records show he also received a $500 donation from University of Hawaii President David Lassner.

Case has not spent a lot of money so far this election cycle and reported having more than $188,000 in cash on hand by the end of June.

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