Georgia Democrats rake in cash
2 Senate hopefuls raise over $100M each, top Republicans
ATLANTA — The two Democratic candidates in the Senate runoffs in Georgia each raised more than $100 million in the past two months — huge sums that put them ahead of their Republican opponents in closely watched races that will determine control of Congress’s upper chamber.
Democrat Jon Ossoff raised almost $107 million, while his Republican opponent, Sen. David Perdue, took in $68 million, according to Federal Election Commission reports made public Thursday.
Democrat Raphael Warnock, the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, raised $103 million, while his opponent, Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler, raised nearly $64 million, the filings show.
The filings cover the period Oct. 15 to Dec. 16, including a portion of the general election and six weeks of the runoff campaign. They provide a snapshot of a race that has attracted national attention as well as all the campaign cash.
Nearly half the campaign haul for the two Democratic candidates came from people donating less than $200. Donations from such small-dollar givers made up 29% of Loeffler’s haul and 25% of Perdue’s.
Political groups and campaigns have spent nearly $468 million on ads in the two races, according to data from AdImpact.
The four candidates are also being supported by several super PACs and nonprofit organizations. These groups have also poured millions into advertisements, FEC records show.
Among the many super PACs supporting the Republican candidates is Georgia United Victory, which is funded primarily by Loeffler’s husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, chairman of the New York Stock Exchange. The super PAC has spent $4.5 million since the Nov. 3 election, according to the FEC, mostly on digital advertising and get-out-the-vote campaigns for Loeffler and Perdue.
Another super PAC, Peachtree PAC, bankrolled by the GOP-supporting Senate Leadership Fund, was set up solely for the Georgia runoff. The super PAC, which spent more than $15 million during the past seven weeks, is not required to disclose its donors until well after the runoff, under FEC rules.
Some Georgia-based groups supporting the Democrats have also seen a surge in donations, according to previously filed reports. Fair Fight, a group founded by former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, raised $22 million between Nov. 24 and Dec. 16, a spike in donations since the group was founded in 2019.
Two other major super PACs supporting the Democrats in the races, Georgia Honor and Georgia Way, have spent $28 million since the general election, according to FEC reports. They are backed by Senate Majority PAC, which works to elect Democrats to the chamber. They also are not required to disclose their donors before the runoff.
If both Democrats win, the upper chamber would be split 50-50 between the two parties, with Vice President Kamala Harris holding the tie-breaking vote.
The race will determine whether President-elect Joe Biden is able to enact an ambitious agenda in his first two years or whether Republicans can erect a bulwark against Democratic control.
The result of all the spending in the race, as any Georgian near a television screen can attest, is an avalanche of ads flooding airwaves, sometimes filling entire blocks of commercials during news broadcasts and SEC football games. Planeloads of prominent politicians have traversed Georgia, trying to whip up their bases.
President Donald Trump made an appearance in Valdosta, Ga., this month and is planning another visit. He has encouraged Republicans to vote despite questioning the integrity of the state’s election system. Vice President Mike Pence has made six visits to the state.
They and other Republicans have cast Loeffler and Perdue as a last line of defense against total control by politicians they have vilified, such as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
Former President Barack Obama appeared at a virtual get-out-the-vote event, and both Biden and Harris have made appearances, stressing to supporters that a pair of Democratic victories would curb Republican obstruction in the Senate and help the new president make sweeping changes that Democrats have long advocated.