Democrats outraised Republicans in competitive congressional races during the second quarter of the year, new fundraising reports show, putting down-ballot candidates on solid financial ground as Democratic concerns grow over President Joe Biden’s candidacy.
But several vulnerable Senate Democrats also burned through cash over the same period, reflecting a challenging political environment, as their candidates in the most competitive races spent more money than they raised.
The filing period, which spans April 1 through June 30, only includes three days since the CNN presidential debate between Biden and former President Donald Trump. The deadline was also well before Saturday’s assassination attempt on Trump at a Pennsylvania rally.
Here are several takeaways from the latest fundraising reports filed with the Federal Election Commission:
Senate Democrats maintain financial edge
In the second quarter, Senate Democrats continued to display the fundraising prowess that’s powered the party to success in recent cycles as they try to defend their narrow majority. Democrats outraised their Republican opponents in the nine competitive Senate races on CNN’s list of the 10 seats most likely to flip.
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, one of the party’s most vulnerable incumbents, raised $12.8 million, the most of any Senate incumbent in the quarter. And Montana Sen. Jon Tester – the only other Democrat besides Brown seeking reelection in a state won by Trump in 2020 – also had a strong quarter, raising $10.6 million.
Vulnerable Democrats have also stockpiled large war chests as the campaign season approaches the crucial fall months. Three Democratic senators reported at least $10 million on hand on June 30 – Brown, Tester and Nevada Sen. Jacky Rosen. Several other Democrats also had nearly $10 million in cash, including Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego ($9.4 million), Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin ($9.6 million) and Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey ($8.4 million)
Countering those efforts, Senate Republican hopefuls continued to mix personal contributions into their second-quarter fundraising. Four candidates – Tim Sheehy in Montana, Eric Hovde in Wisconsin, Dave McCormick in Pennsylvania and Bernie Moreno in Ohio – each loaned his campaign at least $1 million during the period. Hovde, a banking executive, has loaned his campaign $13 million since entering the race in February.
Even as they enjoyed strong fundraising, however, many Senate Democrats burned through their cash in the second quarter, spending heavily on early advertising campaigns and laying the groundwork for highly competitive fall races.
Four of the party’s vulnerable incumbents – Tester, Casey, Rosen and Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin – spent at least $10 million over the three-month period. And Brown spent more than $18 million, cutting into his cash stockpile despite his strong fundraising. All five spent more than they raised.
A highly competitive battle is also underway for the House, where Republicans hold a razor-thin majority, and Democrats hold the financial edge there as well.
Democratic candidates outraised their GOP opponents in 21 of the 22 of the House races currently rated as Toss-ups by The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, the most competitive category. Arizona Rep. David Schweikert was the lone Republican in this group to lead in second-quarter fundraising – but the fractured field of Democrats competing in the July 30 primary combined to outraise him.
Underscoring Democrats’ fundraising strength, 11 of their candidates in the Toss-up races also reported war chests of $3 million or more, and five of those topped $4 million. Only three Republicans in Toss-up races entered July with cash-on-hand totals of more than $3 million.
California and New York are home to several competitive House races that could determine which party controls the chamber next year, and Democrats outpaced their Republicans opponents in these crucial Toss-up contests.
In California’s 41st Congressional District, Democrat Will Rollins outraised longtime GOP Rep. Ken Calvert by about $850,000, while three other battleground California Democrats each raised about $1 million or more.
In New York, meanwhile, a trio of freshman House Republicans – Reps. Anthony D’Esposito, Mike Lawler and Marc Molinaro – were all outraised by their Democratic challengers and reported less cash on hand.
The new round of FEC reports also show the leading outside groups and super PACs hauling in huge sums as they prepare to blitz the battleground airwaves with campaign advertising.
In the fight for the Senate, the Senate Majority PAC, which is affiliated with Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, raised $44.3 million and entered July with $124.3 million banked.
The PAC outraised its Republican counterpart – the Senate Leadership Fund, which is aligned with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell – which brought in $41.7 million and received $18.4 million from One Nation, the group’s issue advocacy dark-money arm. Senate Leadership Fund also ended the second quarter with $117 million on hand to spend on the air against Senate Democrats.
Congressional Leadership Fund, the main super PAC supporting House Republicans, entered July with $110.8 million in the bank. The group raised $46.4 million from April through the end of June. Its Democratic counterpart, House Majority PAC, files its reports on a monthly basis and will do so next on July 20.
Senate Leadership Fund received large checks from notable GOP donors, including Miriam Adelson, the widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, and Paul Singer, who donated $10 million each, and Walmart heirs Jim C. Walton and Rob Walton, who each donated $2 million.
Congressional Leadership Fund received $10 million from hedge fund executive Ken Griffin, a prolific GOP megadonor. Singer gave $10 million, and Adelson donated $5 million. Stephen Schwarzman, the chairman of the Blackstone Group, donated $2 million.
On the Democratic side, Senate Majority PAC received $3.5 million from Democracy PAC, an outside group affiliated with Democratic megadonor George Soros.
These four super PACs are poised to play massive roles in the months ahead as the campaign season intensifies. According to data from the ad tracking firm AdImpact, the super PACs have more than $589 million in future advertising reservations still set to air during the remainder of this year.
Trump’s campaign has seen a surge in support from the Silicon Valley moneyed class.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that Elon Musk – who endorsed the former president Saturday less than an hour after he survived his assassination attempt – is prepared to plow about $45 million a month into a new group, America PAC, recently launched to support Trump’s bid.
CNN has reached out to Musk for comment.
America PAC collected $9 million in June – its first full month of operation, according to its filing Monday with the FEC. Top donors include Antonio Gracias, the CEO of Valor Equity Partners who sits on the board of directors of Musk’s SpaceX. He gave $1 million to the group.
Ken Howery, Trump’s ambassador to Sweden and a PayPal co-founder like Musk, also contributed $1 million to America PAC.
Silicon Valley’s growing affinity for Trump was evident Monday during the opening night of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. David Sacks, a Silicon Valley tech entrepreneur who co-hosted a fundraiser for the Trump campaign last month at his San Francisco home, was among the day’s speakers. That only underscores the bridge that Ohio Sen. JD Vance, Trump’s newly announced vice presidential pick and a former venture capitalist himself, has helped the former president build to the world of tech investors, even before he secured the No. 2 slot on the ticket.
As CNN previously reported, Vance helped organize the Sacks event.
Some of Trump’s longtime supporters are also opening their checkbooks. Filings show that Miriam Adelson donated $5 million last month to Preserve America – a newly reinvigorated super PAC that has pledged to spend tens of millions of dollars supporting Trump’s candidacy.
In the 2020 election, the Adelsons donated $90 million to the group in an effort to aid Trump in his unsuccessful bid for a second term.
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