(SRN NEWS/AP) – Democrats are boasting of eye-popping fundraising hauls in some of this year’s top Senate contests, including Georgia’ a potential sign of voter enthusiasm, experts say, in what remains an uphill quest to win the Senate majority.
In the first three months of the year, Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico’s campaign said he brought in $27 million, while vulnerable incumbent Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia said he raised $14 million. Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s campaign said he’ll report $13.8 million and former Sen. Sherrod Brown will report $12.5 million in his comeback bid in Ohio.
The money will help Democrats make their case to voters and counter Republican attacks, but it doesn’t change the fundamental fact that control of the Senate will be decided in territory that favors Republicans. Except for Maine, where Democrats Graham Platner and Janet Mills are still battling for the party’s nomination to challenge Republican Sen. Susan Collins, all of the top battleground races are in states President Donald Trump won in 2024.
While Democrats touted their totals, they offer only a snapshot of overall fundraising, as campaigns had until the end of the day Wednesday to file with the Federal Election Commission.
In races where Republicans had reported their fundraising by Tuesday evening, Democrats were far outpacing them.
In Texas, incumbent Sen. Jon Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton — who are locked in a bitter runoff for the GOP nomination — raised $2.5 million combined, less than 10% of Talarico’s revenue for the quarter. Two of the three main Republicans in Georgia — Derek Dooley and Buddy Carter — combined for about $1.1 million. The third, Mike Collins, had not yet reported his fundraising as of Wednesday evening.