Irvine’s 45th District Representative Katie Porter has dominated her Orange County counterparts in the U.S. House of Representatives in terms of fundraising.

In just the first quarter of 2021, Porter has raised more than $2.2 million. 

Locally, Porter’s contributions towered over other Orange County representatives – 42nd District Rep. Young Kim with $545,102 total contributions, followed by Michelle Steel (48th District, R-Seal Beach) who brought in just over $544,000.

While the next congressional elections are not scheduled until November 2022, that has not stopped “Porter Supporters” from backing the former UC Irvine law professor.

In total, Porter’s first quarter campaign donations surpassed all other Orange County representatives by more than $650,000, according to the Federal Elections Commission’s records. 

In terms of competition, Porter’s 45th District opponent Brian Burley’s campaign (R-Huntington Beach) has yet to demonstrate it can become a magnet for contributions, as Porter has illustrated.

Burley’s first quarter report filed with the FEC indicates his campaign generated $32,867 in contributions.

Burley, a Huntington Beach native, and information technology analyst by trade, ran for the 48th District Congress in 2020, but did not make it past the primary, which was fought between then-O.C. Supervisor Steel and incumbent Rouda.

Ultimately, Steel would prevail over the democratic incumbent — 51.1% to 48.9%.

Elected in 2018, Porter ran against incumbent Mimi Walters, a Republican and former Laguna Beach mayor. Porter defeated Walters 52.1% to 47.9%, winning her first congressional seat.

In 2020, Porter ran against Mission Viejo republican Greg Raths, winning 53.5% to 46.5%.

In 2018, Porter reported $261,364 in first quarter contributions, then moved on to defeat Walters. It should be noted that Walters’ campaign raised $4,937,508 in contributions between 2017-18. 

However, Porter’s contributions surpassed Walters’ by more than $2 million — raising a total of $6,975,217 during the same period. 

In 2020, prior to defeating Raths, Porter posted a first quarter contribution total of $1,740,899 compared to Raths’ $58,251.

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting Irvine Weekly and our advertisers.