Over the first three months of this year, district-hopping congressional candidate Bo Hines didn’t get a single campaign donation over $50 from people he’s running to represent, according to the latest campaign finance reports in his race.

It’s entirely possible smaller donations, below the $50 threshold that triggers a federal requirement to report the donor’s name and address, came from within the 13th Congressional District. But nothing larger did. Only six of the named donations that Hines’ campaign recorded between Jan. 1 and March 31 came from inside North Carolina.

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This lack of local financial support is unusual in a congressional race, and it may fuel a familiar line of attack against Hines: That the 26-year-old first-time office-seeker, who has former President Donald Trump’s endorsement, is not invested in the district.

“Zero?” Catawba College political scientist Michael Bitzer said when told about Hines’ in-district fundraising. “Well, that’s a low number.”

Hines senior advisor Rob Burgess said the campaign has “a very aggressive small-dollar program” and that Hines “clearly has a lot of support from within the district when it comes to un-itemized contributions.” He also said Hines is, “humbled by the outpouring of support from constituents that he’s received every day while going door-to-door.”

Hines had been living in Winston-Salem, though Burgess said he recently moved to Fuquay-Varina. He’d talked of a congressional run since college, and over the last half year planned runs in multiple North Carolina districts. Those district lines shifted several times as the state legislature, and then the courts, redrew North Carolina’s congressional districts in the post-census redistricting process.

The 13th district now includes southern Wake County, all of Johnston County and parts of Harnett and Wayne counties. The district is one of the most competitive between Republicans and Democrats in North Carolina, based on past election results, and the race drew eight Republicans and five Democrats.

One of those Republicans is former U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers, who put up a lackluster fundraising figure over the first quarter of this year, bringing in just over $10,000.

“Only $10,000?” Bitzer said. “Wow.”

Ellmers said she’s only been running full-time in this race for a month. Before that, Ellmers said she spent much of her time doing COVID tests in Johnston County. She’s a registered nurse as well as a former three-term congresswoman, and she lost a crowded GOP primary two years ago in the lieutenant governor’s race.

“My numbers are not going to be impressive as far as fundraising,” she said. “I’m running a grassroots campaign. I think the amount of money that’s being thrown at this race—I think people need to take notice.”

Hines raised $119,000 over the quarter, but that’s not the key. Club for Growth, a conservative political action committee, said in early April that it’s spending $1.3 million to get him elected.

The other big-money candidate in the race is Kelly Daughtry, a Smithfield attorney and the daughter of Leo Daughtry, a former long-time member of the North Carolina House of Representatives. Kelly Daughtry raised nearly $259,000 this quarter, and she loaned her campaign another $2 million.

Kent Keirsey’s campaign raised more than $204,000 over the period, plus a $50,000 loan from the candidate.

Also in this Republican primary, pastor Chad Slotta raised nearly $49,000 over the first three months of the year and loaned his campaign $110,000.. DeVan Barbour raised about $82,000.

The latest data from GOP candidates Jessica Morel also wasn’t available Friday. The final candidate, Kevin Alan Wolff, does not appear to have filed with the FEC, signaling he is not actively fundraising in the race.

On the Democratic side there are two candidates with political experience: State Sen. Wiley Nickel and former state Sen. Sam Searcy. Their quarterly reports had not spooled up on the FEC’s website as of Friday afternoon.

WRAL State Government Reporter Bryan Anderson contributed to this report.

Correction: This post initially gave an incorrect fundraising total for candidate Chad Slotta. It has been corrected.