Senate Dems rake it in for 2018
GOP sees a surge in donations, too, as the battle lines are drawn for midterm elections
Many vulnerable Senate WASHINGTON Democrats saw their campaign donations soar during the first three months of the year as they raced to demonstrate early financial strength ahead of the 2018 battle for the Senate.
The 10 Democratic incumbents up for re- election in states carried by President Trump collectively raised nearly $ 19 million from Jan. 1 to March 31, more than twice what they collected during the comparable period of their last Senate campaigns, a USA TODAY tally of newly released figures shows.
There will be no shortage of money on the Republican side, either.
The National Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee raised $ 7 million in March alone, its highest monthly haul in a non- election year, party officials said. And new Federal Election Commission filings show that several House Republicans considering bids have assembled massive war chests in the year’s first three months.
Nathan Gonzales, who tracks Senate races as editor of the non- partisan newsletter Inside Elections, said the surge in fundraising underscores the power of incumbents to raise money and the energy of liberal donors in the Trump era.
“If you are a Democrat and you are not raising a lot of money right now, there’s something wrong with you,” Gonzales said, noting the record sums flowing into a Georgia House race to back Democrat Jon Ossoff, a 30- year- old political novice competing in a special election Tuesday. “Democratic donors and Democrats in general are itching for the next fight.”
The review of fundraising figures shows six of the 10 Senate Democrats seeking re- election in Trump territory raised at least $ 2 million in the first quarter.
Leading the pack: Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, whose state backed Trump by double digits over Democrat Hillary Clinton in November. McCaskill raised $ 2.8 million in the first quarter of the year, far outpacing the $ 1.1 million she had collected at this point six years ago.
Newly filed Federal Election Commission reports show that a possible McCaskill challenger, Republican Rep. Ann Wagner, has a $ 2.8 million war chest.
Republicans have a 52- 48 majority in the Senate. Democrats face an enormous challenge in retaining the seats they now have, much less picking up the three GOP seats they would need to seize the majority.
Of the 34 seats up in 2018, 25 are held by Democrats and the two independents who caucus with them. By contrast, just nine Senate Republicans are up for reelection in 2018, including one in a special election in deep- red Alabama.
Nevada Sen. Dean Heller is the only Republican incumbent who represents a state Clinton won in last year’s election.
Democrats “face an overextended map,” said Kyle Kondik, who analyzes federal races at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics. “But midterm forces often break against the president’s party.”
Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, facing a possible general- election rematch against Republican state treasurer Josh Mandel, has collected $ 2.4 million in the first quarter, a sharp climb from the $ 1.3 million he had collected at this point in the 2012 election.
The Brown- Mandel showdown in 2012 was one of the most expensive Senate races that year. Outside groups spent about $ 20 million targeting Brown for defeat, according to a tally by the Center for Responsive Politics.
“We fully expect that to happen again,” said Justin Barasky, Brown’s campaign manager. “Our strong first quarter numbers prove Ohioans are eager to re- elect Sherrod and strongly support his fight for working families.”
Mandel’s team said he raised nearly $ 1.5 million through several fundraising organizations and had more than $ 2.4 million in those bank accounts.
Mandel could face a primary challenge from a well- funded Republican: nine- term Ohio Rep. Pat Tiberi, who started April with $ 6.3 million in the bank, according to a campaign finance report filed over the weekend.
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin reported the lowest fundraising among the 10 Democrats seeking re- election in Trump- won states. Manchin took in a modest $ 556,198 in the first quarter, roughly $ 27,000 more than he raised at this point six years ago.
But Kondik noted that Manchin, a former governor, has widespread name recognition in West Virginia
Gonzales said, “If Joe Manchin loses, it’s not going to be because he didn’t have enough money. It will be because his state is so Republican now.”