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Michelle Ye Hee Lee
National business and responsibility company reporter covering money and influence in politics
Democratic candidates for the most agitated contests in the Senate and House have seen an increase in large cash donations for their campaigns during the latter part of the mid-term election – a sign of an energy increased left wishing to stimulate candidates to the finish line in the hope of regaining the majority in both chambers.
Donations made to Democratic senators offer a glimmer of hope in their essentially defensive fight in the upper house. The Democratic Senate candidates at the nine most competitive races, including candidates vying for reelection in deep red states who voted overwhelmingly for Donald Trump in 2016, raised a total of $ 212 million , against 164 million dollars collected up to here by the Republicans, according to the report. FEC files filed Monday night.
In the nine Senate races, Democrats have dominated the Republicans so far in the cycle, with the majority of them outperforming their GOP opponents in the third quarter, from July to September, according to the records. .
The Democratic House candidates also received a strong cash increase in the third quarter. Over the last three months, the Democratic challenger has surpassed the Republican candidate among the most competitive home-based races across the country. Some have raised more than double the amount obtained by the GOP account holder.
The increase in direct contributions to the House campaigns shows that enthusiasm for Democratic challengers in 2018 is gaining momentum – particularly those who make modest contributions of $ 200 or less.
Donations to the campaign committees came pouring in when outside groups stepped up their support to both sides with large donations from wealthy donors.
[Meet the wealthy donors pouring millions into the 2018 elections]
The wealthiest donors donated tens of millions of dollars in September alone to outside groups to support GOP candidates, particularly to help Republicans stay in the House. Notably, mega-donors Sheldon and Miriam Adelson spent $ 32 million in September helping Republicans, bringing their total GOP super PACs contributions to at least $ 87 million.
A lot of money also helps the left. The PAC at the Senate majority, a super PAC that works to elect Democrats in the Senate, has so far raised its GOP counterpart in the cycle.
On the Senate side, the main fundraiser for the third quarter was Beto representative O & Rourke (D-Texas), who broke records for fundraising in the Senate with a $ 38.1 million fundraiser. dollars in the third quarter, compared to Senator Ged's $ 11.6 million in Cruz.
While Cruz is leading the public polls, O'Rourke has attracted a significant clientele in and out of Texas in recent months. According to his campaign, the O'Rourke Rally with country music star Willie Nelson attracted about 50,000 spectators in September.
President Trump announced Monday that he would hold a "Make America Great Again" rally in Houston on October 22 to support Cruz. Trump had promised to organize a "big rally" for Cruz in "the largest stadium in Texas we could find." The rally venue announced Monday has a maximum capacity of about 10,000 people.
[‘ A vote for ____ is a vote for me’: Trump has endorsed these 2018 candidates so far]
The O'Rourke campaign raised approximately 45% of funds raised from donors of US $ 200 or less – a sign of basic energy. But no less than 46 percent of contributions over $ 200 came from outside Texas – a sign that it is gaining national popularity. Cruz collected 30% of contributions in modest dollars.
Democrats who ran for the Senate had raised a large percentage of campaign funds through cheap donations – a huge trend for this fall's Democrats campaign, fueled by anti-Trump "resistance" energy. The difference was flagrant in the Senate race in Florida, where incumbent Democratic MP Bill Nelson collected about 22% of campaign funds in this cycle in the form of small donations.
In comparison, less than 3% of his opponent's campaign donations, Governor Rick Scott, came from this type of donation. Scott donated $ 39 million to his campaign – the bulk of his money.
Rep. Martha McSally, a Republican congressman who was arguing over the Senate vacancy in Arizona after Senator Jeff Flake (R) resigned, was an exception in Arizona. About a quarter of McSally's donations were raised as modest donations, compared to about a fifth for his opponent, Kyrsten Sinema. Sinema has raised more money so far in the elections, with $ 16 million against $ 12.6 million for McSally.
[Trump tops $100 million in fundraising for his own reelection]
Another notable money trend in the Senate battles has been observed in Missouri, where Democratic Party incumbent Claire McCaskill is in a tight race against her opponent, Josh Hawley. McCaskill spent a good deal of the $ 30 million she collected during this cycle, leaving him only $ 3.1 million in the bank for the last month of the campaign. His opponent collected $ 13.9 million but had a little more cash with $ 3.5 million.
Democrat contenders competing for huge sums of money on GOP holders include candidates who raised between $ 6 and $ 7 million in just three months – such as Katie Hill at the 25th Congress of California and Antonio Delgado in the 19th Congress of New York District.
Amy McGrath, which takes place in the Sixth Congressional District, Kentucky, covers the cities of Lexington and Frankfort. After spending all her money on a tough primary, McGrath raised money faster than GOP party owner Andy Barr for her run in the general election in one of the most competitive races from the country.
McGrath raised $ 3.6 million, up from $ 1.2 million this quarter. For the total cycle, they both raised $ 6.7 million each. McGrath transported about $ 1.6 million – about a quarter – in small donations.
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