Gov. Linda Lingle raised $1.3 million during the first six months of this year and has $2.2 million in cash available for her re-election campaign in 2006, according to her latest campaign spending report.

The Republican governor, who spent a record $5.4 million during her successful campaign in 2002, has built a formidable fundraising cushion against possible challengers. No Democrat has formally entered the race for governor and party leaders are aware that a candidate — unless independently wealthy — would likely have to start raising money soon to be competitive.

Lingle has nearly the same amount of money in her war chest that her 2002 opponent, Mazie Hirono, spent during the entire campaign.

The campaign spending report covered Lingle's fundraising activity through the end of June and was filed in late July. The governor reported spending $220,579 during the first six months of the year and $1.8 million during the election cycle so far. The governor did not report any new loans, unpaid expenses or debts during the reporting period.