Is Mandel’s bad press/polling starting to weigh down his fundraising?

Look, unlike Sherrod Brown, we know that State Treasurer Josh Mandel doesn’t tend to his day job.  He’s not even really been campaigning for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate as much as he’s been just simply fundraising.  He’s been traveling everywhere and anywhere where Josh Mandel could raise a buck for his U.S. Senate campaign. 

Up until now, Mandel has been actually raising more money than Sherrod Brown every FEC report that’s been filed in the race so far (although Brown has had more money on hand.)

The latest polling shows Brown still sitting on a fifteen-point lead he’s had all year, despite the U.S. Chamber and other GOP-friendly PACs spending millions in false attack ads concerning Brown.

In fact, Sherrod’s campaign actually released their fundraising numbers early today while predicting that Mandel would outraise them.  But instead, it turns out that Sherrod actually outraised Mandel.

From the Dayton Daily News:

Brown, a Democrat running for a second term in the U.S. Senate, raised nearly $1.6 million last quarter alone and has a little more than $5 million in the bank, according to campaign fundraising information filed Friday.

Of the $1.6 million raised last quarter, $1.1 million was from individuals, $209,830 was from political action committees and other political committees, and the remaining $277,213 came from authorized committees. A spokesman for the Ohio Democratic Party said that money largely came from joint fund-raisers between Brown and other organizations.

Mandel, the most prolific fundraiser competing in the Republican primary to oppose Brown, raised $1.43 million during the fourth fundraising quarter of 2011 and ended the quarter with nearly $4.1 million in the bank.

Mandel did manage to pick up a $1,000 donation from Halliburton’s PAC.  Brown, it appears (the actual reports are not yet available for public inspection) received more in PAC donations, mostly from labor unions.

All and in all, things are looking very well for Brown’s re-election.  He’s well positioned in the polls with a solid and sizeable lead, even after millions in unrebutted attack ads.  Mandel’s lost his fundraising edge and his fundraising is slowing as Brown’s has picked up.  Mandel has been absolutely dogged by bad press, from trying to dodge speaking at the Akron City Club, for not taking positions on the issues, to embarrassing evidence that he’s neglected his duties as State Treasurer almost immediately after taking office in order to run for the Senate.