Senate Democrats outraise Republicans, but GOP has cash edge
Democratic candidates running in the most competitive Senate contests around the country raised a combined $5 million more than their Republican counterparts, but the Republicans maintain a huge cash lead, thanks to several well-heeled incumbents who are sitting on massive war chests.
Across 12 states with 13 Senate seats up for election this year, 16 Democratic candidates raised a combined $32 million in the fourth quarter of 2018, new reports filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show. Eighteen Republican candidates running in those same races pulled in $27 million — a figure which includes a $5 million check written by a wealthy new senator intent on saving her seat from a GOP challenger.
But the reports also show that the 18 Republicans have a combined $96 million in the bank, led by huge sums collected by the top two Senate Republican leaders, while the 16 Democrats have a combined $57 million on hand.
The reports show 20 candidates in those most competitive races raised more than $1 million in the final three months of the year.
No candidate raised more than Amy McGrath (D), a retired Marine challenging Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) in Kentucky. McGrath pulled in $6 million in the quarter, while McConnell managed to raise $3.8 million. However, McConnell maintains a $2 million cash advantage over his Democratic challenger, with $11.5 million in the bank.
Meanwhile in Arizona, Democrat Mark Kelly pulled in just shy of $6 million, marking another quarter in which he outraised Sen. Martha McSally (R) by about $2 million. Kelly’s $13.6 million bank account leads McSally’s $7.7 million stockpile.
Three other challengers pulled in $1 million more than sitting senators: Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) raised $2.7 million for his campaign against Sen. Cory Gardner (R), who pulled in $1.6 million; Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon (D) raised $3.2 million compared to Sen. Susan Collins’s (R) $2 million; and in Michigan, Republican John James raised $3.4 million, outpacing the $2.3 million Sen. Gary Peters (D) raised.
In all three cases, though, the incumbent held a substantial cash lead: Gardner’s $7.7 million cash on hand and Collins’s $7.1 million are both more than double the amount Hickenlooper and Gideon have left over, while Peters holds $2 million more than James.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/481003-senate-dems-outraise-republicans-but-gop-has-cash-edge
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