Democrats led 9 of the 10 most expensive Senate campaigns
In the last election, Democrats spent $189 million more than GOP candidates. Their spending was 86% higher than that of the Republicans.
The organization OpenSecrets published the amount of money raised and spent on the campaigns of each Senate candidate and their party. In total, Democrats raised $819,366,939 and spent $721,672,270. Meanwhile, Republicans raised 660,300,676 and spent 629,371,875.
The largest individual contributor was tycoon George Soros, who contributed 128,485,971 to Democrats. Behind the funding of many candidates are organizations such as Planned Parenthood, which started a fund to support those who advocate for federal legislation to restore abortion rights in the wake of the Supreme Court's recent ruling.
Most expensive Senate races
Democrats will keep their majority in the House after the midterms. Tight victories by Democratic candidates in Nevada and Arizona bring the party to a total of 50 seats. This, coupled with the tie-breaking vote of Vice President Kamala Harris, allows them to continue to control this legislative body.
However, despite the close race, when it comes to financing, one thing is clear: Democrats received and spent much more money on their campaigns than Republicans:
- Georgia: Raphael Warnock (D) had $98,654,186 for his campaign. He spent about $75,959,811. This is a hefty figure compared to that of his Republican challenger, Herschel Walker, who raised $37,485,371 and spent $32,061,100.
- Florida: Val Demings (D), who did not win a seat, raised $72,316,479, of which she spent $68,167,849. Her opponent, Marco Rubio (R), came out ahead after having raised $46,596,123 He used $42,666,657 for his campaign.
-Arizona: The amount of money invested in Democrat Mark Kelly’s successful campaign was significantly higher than that of his rival Blake Masters (R). The Democratic winner raised $79,361,007, of which he spent $73,477,987. The Republican raised $12,006,741, of which he invested $9,412,054 in his campaign.
- Pennsylvania: John Fetterman (D) won a Senate seat in his state and raised $56,690,623, of which he spent $52,148,697. With $16 million less, his Republican challenger, Mehmet Oz, spent $37,739,643 of the $40,376,431 he raised in total.
- Ohio: Tim Ryan (D) had $47,300,863 in his budget and spent $44,513,984, a large sum that wasn’t enough to win. His opponent, JD Vance, who won the Senate seat, had a total of $12,072,808 and used $9,086,861 throughout his campaign.
- Wisconsin: Ron Johnson (R) came out on top of the race with less money available than his Democratic challenger. The Republican raised $31,562,985 and spent $28,088,285 on his Senate race. Mandela Barnes (D) raised $34,594,006 and spent $32,040,023 on his campaign.
- Nevada: Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto, won her seat with a total of $52,861,721 for her campaign. She spent $46,644,188. Adam Laxalt (R) had a much smaller amount at $15,546,338, of which he spent $12,359,027.
- North Carolina: Cheri Beasley (D) raised more than $33 million for her campaign. The Democrat spent $30,828,658. Ted Budd won with a much smaller budget, $12,483,874, of which he spent $12,390,399.
-New Hampshire: Maggie Hassan (D), who came out on top, raised a total of $38,340,375 and spent $36,180,756. Her Republican challenger, Don Bolduc, had just over $2 million and spent $1,926,435.
Republicans only had more funding in one state compared to Democrats:
- South Carolina: Tim Scott (R), who won his Senate race, raised $49,340,325, of which he spent $31,782,113. This is an especially large amount considering the amount his Democratic challenger, Krystle Matthews, had on hand. She had $131,539, and she invested a total of $88,944 in her campaign.