“Senate Democrats Up For Reelection This Cycle Are Breaking New Ground In Their Fundraising Totals”

Senate Democrats’ campaigns posted “record-breaking” fundraising reports during the second quarter. New reporting is highlighting how these fundraising numbers demonstrate “there’s no shortage of grassroots energy for the party’s top Senate candidates” and that it “shows no signs of abating.”

Here’s what they’re saying: 

The Messenger: Democrats’ Fundraising Advantage Shows No Signs Of Slowing Down
Democrats have dominated candidate fundraising for years, creating a problem that Republicans have long admitted
Dan Merica and Matt Holt
July 5, 2023

• Democrats have held a fundraising advantage against Republicans for years. And the newly announced second-quarter reports from Senate candidates across the country signal the advantage shows no signs of abating.
  
  
• “Voters and grassroots supporters are once again supporting battle-tested Senate Democratic candidates in record ways because they recognize the stakes of the election and the importance of stopping Republicans from implementing their toxic agenda, like a national ban on abortion,” said Tommy Garcia, spokesperson for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
  

• This is a trend that Democrats have enjoyed for years. In 2018, Republicans were gobsmacked by the amount of money small-dollar donors poured into Democratic campaigns. In 2020, the deluge continued. And in 2022, Democratic candidates again significantly outraised Republicans as donors voiced their disapproval of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade just months before Election Day.
  

• The advantage has significant implications for Republicans. Because candidates get far better rates on television advertising than committees and outside groups, Democrats are able to blanket the airwaves with less money, forcing top Republican donors to pour money into outside groups so that candidates can reach some parity on the air.

Punchbowl News: Punchbowl News AM
By Max Cohen
July 14, 2023

• One bright spot for Democrats is that their incumbents are raising money at a record rate. In a wide range of key races, Senate Democrats up for reelection this cycle are breaking new ground in their fundraising totals.
  
  
• Friends of Sherrod Brown, Sen. Sherrod Brown’s (D-Ohio) campaign account, raised $5 million in the second quarter, an off-year Q2 record in an Ohio Senate race.
  

• Montanans for Tester, affiliated with Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), raised $5 million in Q2. That is the most ever raised in an off-year Q2 in a Montana Senate campaign.
  

• Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) brought in more than $4 million in the second quarter — a record for Casey in a single quarter.
  

• Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) raised more than $3.2 million in Q2, another record for an off-year quarter in a Wisconsin Senate race.
  

• Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) brought in $2.7 million in the second quarter. Rosen’s campaign pointed to her $7.5 million on hand as a state record at this point in a Senate race.
  

• Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who still hasn’t announced whether he’s running for reelection, raised nearly $1.3 million in Q2. Manchin has $10.7 million in the bank. Manchin’s leadership PAC, Country Roads PAC, has another $2.2 million. This is far more than any potential GOP opponents have raised up to this point.
  

• DSCC Chair Gary Peters greeted the fundraising numbers as evidence that Democratic incumbents enjoy “strong support.” But Peters said raising big money early in the cycle means candidates can “communicate your message early and make sure that you can get out before anyone else can.”

The Washington Post: The Early 202
Analysis by Theodoric Meyer and Leigh Ann Caldwell with research by Tobi Raji
July 14, 2023

• Here’s a rundown of how much Democrats raised in the major Senate battlegrounds:
  
  
• Montana: Democratic Sen. Jon Tester raised more than $5 million, with more than $10 million in cash on hand. That’s much more than the $4.7 million he had on hand at this point in the 2018 cycle.
  
  
• Nevada: Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen raised $2.7 million, giving her more than $7.5 million in cash on hand on June 30. That’s much more than the roughly $416,000 she had on hand at this point in the 2018 cycle.
  
  
• Ohio: Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown raised $5 million, with $8.7 million in cash on hand. That’s slightly more than the $6.7 million he had in his campaign account at this point in the 2018 cycle.
  
  
• Pennsylvania: Democratic Sen. Bob Casey Jr. raised more than $4 million, with nearly $6 million in cash on hand. That’s more than the $5.6 million Casey had on hand at this point in the 2018 cycle.
  
  
• West Virginia: Manchin raised nearly $1.3 million, giving him $10.7 million in cash on hand on June 30. He had more than $2.2 million more in Country Roads PAC, his leadership PAC, according to figures shared with The Early. That’s much more than at this point in the 2018 cycle.
  
  
• Wisconsin: Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin raised more than $3.2 million for her reelection campaign.

MT – NBC News: Sen. Jon Tester raises $5 million amid tough reelection fight
By Bridget Bowman
July 6, 2023

• Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., raised $5 million in the most recent fundraising quarter as he gears up for another battleground race in 2024. The Montana Democrat ended the quarter on June 30 with more than $10 million in his campaign account, according to fundraising numbers shared first with NBC News.
  

• The Tester campaign noted that the haul from April through June is Tester’s best second-quarter fundraising total for a non-election year. Tester’s campaign now also has donations from every county in Montana.
  
  
• “Montanans from all 56 counties donated to Jon Tester because they know he relentlessly fights for our Montana values every day,” Shelbi Dantic, Tester’s campaign manager, said in a statement. “From our rural communities to Indian Country to our cities and towns, Montanans are fired up to keep the dirt farmer from Big Sandy in the United States Senate.” 

NV – The Nevada Independent: Rosen has record $7.5 million on hand after second quarter of 2023
By Gabby Birenbaum
July 10, 2023 

• Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) raised $2.7 million in the second quarter of 2023, leaving her with $7.5 million in cash on hand going into the second half of the year — a state record for money in the bank at this point, according to her campaign.

• Rosen’s campaign said the haul includes donations from over 12,000 new donors, and that she received money from all 17 counties in the state. This was Rosen’s best fundraising quarter of the cycle, besting her $2.4 million haul in the first quarter and $1.5 million in the final quarter of 2022.
  
  
• Rosen’s massive war chest will give her an advantage over her eventual Republican challenger, who will have to spend money early to win the primary.
  
  
• “While Republicans fight each other in what’s gearing up to be a messy, expensive, and increasingly crowded primary, Senator Rosen is raising the resources needed to communicate with voters across the state about her work as one of the most bipartisan Senators getting things done and delivering for Nevada,” Lexie Leventis, Rosen’s finance director, said in a statement.

OH – The Messenger: Longtime Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown Raises $5 Million in the Second Quarter (Exclusive)
By Dan Merica and Matt Holt
July 10, 2023

• Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown will report raising $5 million in the second fundraising quarter of 2023. Brown … will report $8.7 million cash on hand entering July, according to a campaign official. The campaign said that 95% of its contributions this quarter were under $100.
  

• “Ohioans are rallying behind our campaign because they know Sherrod is fighting for them and the Dignity of Work,” said Campaign Manager Rachel Petri. “We are grateful to have Ohioans from every corner of the state on Team Sherrod and are ready to carry this enthusiasm through next year to ensure Sherrod can continue putting Ohioans first and standing up to anyone who gets in the way.”
  

• A competitive GOP primary is shaping up in the Buckeye State to take on Brown. While Ohio isn’t expected to be competitive on the presidential level, both Democrats and Republicans are expecting the Senate race to be one of the most expensive of the cycle. Brown is the only statewide elected official that is a Democrat.

PA – Associated Press: Pennsylvania Democrat Bob Casey lands his best fundraising quarter in his Senate reelection campaign 
By Marc Levy
July 5, 2023

• Democratic Sen. Bob Casey raised more than $4 million in the last three months — his best fundraising quarter ever — as he awaits a Republican challenger to his reelection bid in the critical battleground state of Pennsylvania, his campaign said Wednesday.
  

• Casey’s campaign said the fundraising result beat the previous best quarter of his career by more than $1.2 million. The campaign is reporting nearly $6 million in its bank account. That cash could prove crucial in ensuring Casey has the resources to successfully navigate a campaign in one of the nation’s most politically competitive states.
  

• Casey comes into the 2024 race with strong name recognition — his father was a two-term Pennsylvania governor — and Republicans do not have a deep pool of potential recruits. But many Republicans acknowledge that it will be difficult — or impossible — to beat Casey.
  

• In Pennsylvania, Casey has run statewide seven times already, winning six of those races, and has never run a close race for the Senate. He won his 2018 race by 13 percentage points and kept an active schedule on the campaign trail last year by helping Fetterman.

WV – POLITICO: Joe Manchin hasn’t announced if he is running for reelection in West Virginia. But that hasn’t stopped him from posting stronger fundraising totals than his potential opponents.
By Burgess Everett 
July 13, 2023

• Joe Manchin isn’t even a Senate candidate and he’s still outraising his potential opponents, according to numbers first shared with POLITICO.
  

• The West Virginia senator’s campaign raised nearly $1.3 million in the most recent fundraising quarter, besting Republicans Gov. Jim Justice and Rep. Alex Mooney. Manchin’s Country Roads PAC brought in about $400,000.
  

• All told, Manchin has $10.7 million in his campaign coffers and another $2.2 million in his leadership PAC, an impressive warchest if he decides to run — which he says he won’t decide on before the end of the year.
  

• And money goes a long way in West Virginia: Manchin spent less than $9 million in 2018, and the outside spending in the state was dwarfed by other, pricier markets. 
  

• Mooney’s campaign and committees raised $550,000 while Justice raised just shy of $1 million in the most recent quarter. Mooney has about $1.5 million on hand, while Justice is expected to have more than $800,000.

WI – Spectrum News 1: Sen. Baldwin raises record-breaking amount for re-election campaign
By Aly Prouty And Taurean Small 
July 5, 2023

• Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., announced her re-election campaign raised more than $3.2 million during the second quarter of 2023. That’s the highest dollar amount ever raised in a Wisconsin Senate race in one quarter during an off-year, according to her campaign.
  

• Baldwin has raised more than $5.3 million this cycle so far — more than she raised in 2018 at this time. She’s on pace to surpass her 2018 fundraising totals, which hovered around $28 million. Baldwin said she has received donations from every county in the state. Baldwin’s most common donors are doctors, nurses and educators, her campaign said.
  
  
• “It’s an honor to have the support of so many workers and families across Wisconsin,” Baldwin said. “I’m committed to working hard for our state until everyone has access to a good job that pays the bills, health care and prescription drugs they can afford, and the same rights and freedoms as their parents and grandparents had.”

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