ALAN SUDERMAN
Associated Press

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia state Republican lawmakers have lost one of their most reliable sources of campaign cash with U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s defeat in a GOP primary contest last month.

Cantor’s campaign account and the Cantor-controlled 7th District Republican Committee have given more than $700,000 directly to Republican state candidates since Cantor was first elected to Congress in 2000. That is according to campaign finance reports compiled by the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonprofit that tracks political contributions.

Helping Cantor help state politicians were big-name donors from around the country attracted by the majority leader’s former star power. They include late Texas billionaires Bob Perry and Harold Simmons and casino magnate Sheldon Adelson’s company.

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