Former state Rep. Peggy Lamm is one of three Democrats vying for the open congressional seat in CD-7 (Lakewood, Arvada, Adams County, Aurora) that will be vacated by Rep. Bob Beauprez’s run for governor. Lamm and former state Sen. Ed Perlmutter are the toast of the Democratic class, but today Lamm may have pulled ahead.

It was announced today that Lamm has received the endorsement of EMILY’s List, a giant fundraising organization that promotes pro-choice Democratic women for public office. It is difficult to get a commitment from EMILY’s List for an endorsement, but candidates who do can expect to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars through that connection alone. If EMILY’s List calls you a recommended candidate, individual donors around the country will send big checks your way. Lamm will now have the ability to outraise Perlmutter, and in politics, money tends to beget money; the more that you have, the more you raise, because big donors generally give to candidates who they think have the best shot at winning.

The EMILY’s List endorsement won’t mean much to the average voter, who probably isn’t paying attention to the CD-7 race at this point anyway. But this is a seminal moment in that campaign and will go a long way toward determining which candidate ends up with the Democratic nomination next August.