It’s too soon to tell if Missouri Democrat Tommy Sowers will seriously threaten the re-election campaign of Republican Rep. Jo Ann Emerson. But it appears that the Army veteran will have enough in campaign funds to wage a credible effort in the southeastern 8th District.

Sowers’ campaign reported Monday that it had raised $205,000 between his candidacy announcement on Sept. 9 and the end of that month, the cutoff point for this year’s third quarter. Sowers’ take is more than three times the amount that Emerson’s 2006 and 2008 Democratic challengers raised for the duration of their campaigns.

Sowers will file a detailed report with the Federal Election Commission by an Oct. 15 deadline, though his campaign said Tuesday that it received contributions from 400 individuals in 37 states, “many of whom are current or former members of the military.” Sowers served two tours of duty in Iraq and also served in Kosovo; he returned to Missouri this July to teach at Missouri University of Science and Technology in his hometown of Rolla.