Democratic Senate candidates continue to swamp their Republican rivals in fundraising, with new campaign finance data showing several of them sitting on staggering stockpiles of cash.
They’ll need all of that cash to counter a potential floodgate of GOP spending following last month’s Supreme Court decision that cleared the way for party committees to spend unlimited amounts on behalf of candidates in federal elections.
Meanwhile, on the House side, both parties touted challengers who outraised incumbents over the three months between April and June.
Democrats point to the fundraising prowess of nearly a dozen candidates in the party’s Red to Blue program for strong recruits. The filings show Democrats “have the resources to deliver their message to voters despite Republican attempts to rig the midterms and distract voters from their broken promises on rising costs, the economy, and the war,’’ Viet Shelton, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said in a statement.
The National Republican Congressional Committee, meanwhile, expressed confidence in the abilities of their at-risk members. “While vulnerable House Democrats struggle to keep pace, Republicans are building the war chest needed to defend our majority, expand the map, and win in November,” NRCC spokesman Mike Marinella said in a statement.
Here are five takeaways from the latest fundraising reports filed with the Federal Election Commission for the three-month period ending June 30.
Big hauls for battleground Senate Democrats
Democrats in key battleground states continue to haul in huge sums, far outpacing their Republican rivals.
In Texas, Democratic state Rep. James Talarico’s campaign reported raising $28 million in the second quarter and heads into the final sprint toward November with $21.5 million banked. His Republican opponent, state Attorney General Ken Paxton, had $1.8 million in his campaign account.
Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff entered July with an eye-popping bank balance of nearly $43 million, compared with $2.1 million for GOP Rep. Mike Collins, who faced a competitive fight for the nomination.
In the race for a pivotal open seat in North Carolina, Democratic former Gov. Roy Cooper raised $8.1 million this quarter from his main campaign account and had nearly $21 million on hand. Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley’s campaign reported a $2.9 million quarterly haul and had $3.5 million in the bank.
In Iowa, Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek collected $3.5 million in the second quarter compared with nearly $3 million for Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson. But Hinson ended the period with $6.7 million on hand versus Turek’s $2.4 million.
Former Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown kept up his reputation as a prolific fundraiser, with his campaign posting a quarterly haul of $14.1 million and ending June with $16.2 million banked. Appointed Republican Sen. Jon Husted reported raising $4.1 million and had $9.4 million banked at June 30.
In Alaska, Democratic former Rep. Mary Peltola again outraised GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan, bringing in $6.9 million to his $2 million for the second quarter. But Sullivan ended June with $8.3 million available to Peltola’s $6.1 million. Both candidates are expected to earn a place on the November ballot after competing in the Aug. 18 all-party primary.
And in Nebraska, Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts reported raising $6.6 million, which included a personal contribution of $5.25 million. . His top rival, independent Dan Osborn, raised $2.4 million.
Senate primary fights continue
In the closely watched Democratic Senate primary in Michigan, progressive favorite Abdul El-Sayed, a former public health official, raised $4.6 million in the second quarter, compared with $2.1 million for establishment-aligned Rep. Haley Stevens. Stevens was also outraised by state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, who dropped out of the race earlier this month after raising $2.7 million last quarter.
Still, Stevens entered July with a cash-on-hand advantage over El-Sayed, $3.4 million to his $2.7 million.
The winner of next month’s primary is set to face Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers, who raised $2.9 million and had $5.7 million on hand.
In Minnesota, home to another ideologically-driven Democratic primary, Rep. Angie Craig outraised Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, her more progressive opponent, $2.6 million to $1.4 million.
Craig also had $5 million banked for the final sprint until the Aug. 11 primary, compared with $1.6 million for Flanagan, who won the state party endorsement in May.
Meanwhile in New Hampshire, Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas reported a $3.5 million haul for the second quarter, which he closed with $5.2 million on hand.
On the Republican side, former Sen. John E. Sununu raised $1.2 million for the quarter, while former Massachusetts Sen. Scott P. Brown raised $279,000. Ahead of the September primary, Sununu closed the quarter with $2.7 million in available cash compared with Brown’s $736,000.
In Massachusetts, Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton raised nearly $1.4 million, to Sen. Edward J. Markey’s $1 million.
Battleground House incumbents trail challengers
More than a dozen incumbents running in competitive districts as designated by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales were outraised by their challengers in the second quarter.
The battleground Republicans in this group included Arizona’s Juan Ciscomani; California’s David Valadao; Colorado’s Jeff Crank; Iowa’s Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Zach Nunn; North Carolina’s Chuck Edwards; New Jersey’s Thomas H. Kean Jr.; New York’s Mike Lawler; Pennsylvania’s Ryan Mackenzie, Rob Bresnahan Jr. and Scott Perry; Texas’ Monica De La Cruz; and Wisconsin’s Derrick Van Orden.
Democratic incumbents who were outraised included Indiana’s Frank J. Mrvan, whose Republican challenger’s haul included a personal loan, and Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico. In Nevada, GOP challenger state Sen. Carrie Buck’s second quarter haul bested Democratic Rep. Dina Titus’ by more than $400,000.
California Rep. Kevin Kiley, who became an independent earlier this year while continuing to caucus with Republicans, was outraised by Democratic challenger Richard Pan.
A handful of incumbents whose primary challengers haven’t yet been decided were also outraised. Florida GOP Rep. Cory Mills, who raised $60,000 in the second quarter, saw two Democratic opponents and a Republican challenger report bigger hauls than him.
Florida Democrats Darren Soto, Kathy Castor and Jared Moskowitz, whose districts became more Republican in redistricting this spring, were each outraised by prospective GOP challengers, although all were assisted by candidate loans.
And ahead of the Aug. 11 primaries in Virginia, GOP Reps. Rob Wittman and Jen Kiggans were outraised by their respective leading Democratic challengers: local prosecutor Shannon Taylor and former Rep. Elaine Luria.
The next round of Democratic ideological infighting
Progressives ended June in high spirits after knocking off House incumbents in New York and Colorado. But their preferred candidates in a handful of upcoming Democratic matchups didn’t outraise their incumbent opponents in the second quarter.
In Michigan, for example, Rep. Shri Thanedar outraised state Rep. Donavan McKinney, who is backed by Justice Democrats and the Working Families Party. Thanedar, a wealthy chemist and entrepreneur, loaned his campaign $800,000 and also reported more than $600,000 in campaign losses.
In Missouri, Rep. Wesley Bell, who faces a primary rematch against former Rep. Cori Bush, easily outpaced his opponent last quarter, bringing in $1.4 million to her $369,000.
Incumbents also outpaced their progressive opponents in a handful of all-Democratic matchups in California: Los Angeles-area Rep. Jimmy Gomez bested Angela Gonzales-Torres, while Sacramento-area Rep. Doris Matsui outraised Justice Democrats-backed Mai Vang, largely on the strength of a $1.4 million loan.
But in the Bay Area, Eric Jones, a former venture capitalist backed by the Bernie Sanders-founded Our Revolution, reported a bigger second quarter haul than 14-term moderate Democratic Rep. Mike Thompson, though that was built almost exclusively on a $5 million contribution to his campaign.
And while Moskowitz was outraised by one of his Republican opponents in Florida, he outcollected Oliver Larkin, a self-described “proud Democratic Socialist” challenging him in next month’s primary.
Intraparty warfare continues
In a bitter contest pitting two GOP incumbents against one another in a redrawn Southern Californian seat, Rep. Young Kim brought in $1.2 million compared to $900,000 for Rep. Ken Calvert.
On the Democratic side, calls for generational change have also created rifts. In deep-blue Connecticut, former Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin again reported outraising 14-term Rep. John B. Larson ahead of their primary next month.
