Dinsdale puts $1 million into his Senate campaign

By Deena Winter | Nebraska Watchdog

LINCOLN, Neb. – Pinnacle Bankcorp President Sid Dinsdale has loaned his U.S. Senate campaign $1 million.

The Republican candidate loaned himself $75,000 in late March, and another $925,000 on April 1, according to his pre-primary election report to the Federal Election Commission.

The bank president is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the financial disclosure form he filed with the U.S. Senate, as all candidates are required to do. His family founded Pinnacle Bank, the third wealthiest bank in Nebraska.

In October, his campaign manager, Beth Kramer, said Dinsdale would use “some” of his money to fund his campaign, but that he planned to raise most of his campaign cash. When asked to define “some,” given his considerable assets, Kramer told Nebraska Watchdog in January, “I’m not going to talk about strategy or what he is or is not willing to put in.”

“He needs to have investors in his campaign,” she said at the time.

But with his most recent loan to the campaign, he is putting in more of his own cash than donors. According to his latest FEC report, he’s raised $938,765. He has also been saying in a TV ad and elsewhere that he’s the only Senate candidate who’s raised over 80 percent of his campaign funds from Nebraskans.

Recent polls indicate Dinsdale is running third in the field of four top-tier Republicans vying to win the May 13 primary election, but closing in fast on frontrunners Ben Sasse and Shane Osborn. The winner faces Democrat David Domina in the November general election.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Contact Deena Winter at deena@nebraskawatchdog.org. Follow Deena on Twitter at @DeenaNEWatchdog

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