April 16, 2025, 8:17 a.m.
Despite fundraising woes throughout the last cycle, Republicans insisted they would maintain their narrow House majority. They were right, as they lost a seat but held a three-vote majority heading into the 119th Congress.
Republicans hope they can sustain the early fundraising momentum this cycle to maintain a competitive edge on the airwaves. They’ll need all the cash they can muster. Historically, the party in power in the White House lost an average of 29 seats in midterms from 1934 to 2018.
Democrats historically have a fundraising advantage, but this is not the first time Republicans have gotten out to an early lead. At this point in the 2024 cycle, Republicans raised on average about $200,000 more than vulnerable Democrats, while maintaining an average cash-on-hand lead of almost $300,000. Even as House Democrats eventually lapped Republicans in the closing months of 2024, Republicans held on to the majority.
Campaign committees are not required to file quarterly reports, but the National Republican Congressional Committee announced raising $36.7 million during the first three months of the year, including $21.5 million in March. The committee entered April with $23.9 million on hand. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has not released its numbers but will report on March fundraising next week.
Speaker Mike Johnson had a big quarter, raising $32.2 million across his various campaign accounts, including $3.2 million to his reelection account. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries raised $3.7 million for his personal campaign account.
Vulnerable Republicans start this election cycle with a cash advantage. The 19 Patriot Republicans—the NRCC’s most vulnerable members—raised $994,000 on average and finished the quarter with $1.2 million average cash on hand. Across the aisle, 26 Democratic Frontliners—the DCCC’s most endangered—raised an average of $506,000 and had $642,000 on hand. It’s not a perfect comparison without challengers, but the data offers useful benchmarks for the start of campaign season.
Just a few challengers outraised incumbents in contested seats. In Colorado's most competitive district, Democratic State Rep. Manny Rutinel outpaced freshman Republican Rep. Gabe Evans. Raven Harrison, a former Texas congressional candidate, and former state Rep. George Moraitis also outraised Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz of Florida, though more than 40 percent of Moraitis’s fundraising came via personal loan.
Because it’s early in the cycle, many incumbents do not yet have challengers. Some candidates launched their campaigns after the March 31 filing deadline, so they do not factor into this data. Candidates often launch campaigns at the start of a new quarter to maximize fundraising time, and this list will be more thorough by the time of Hotline’s next report in July.
Below are the top raisers in races rated Toss Up by The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter.
Democratic-Held Toss Ups
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington led the way among the 10 Democratic Toss Up seats. Heading into 2024, she was one of just five Democratic incumbents in a district President Trump won in the 2020 election. Now, there are 13 Democrats representing districts Trump won.
California’s 13th
- Rep. Adam Gray (D): $404,000
California’s 45th
- Rep. Derek Tran: $460,000
- Former Rep. Michelle Steel (R): $74,382
Maine’s 2nd
- Rep. Jared Golden: $475,000
North Carolina’s 1st
- Rep. Don Davis: $328,000
New Mexico’s 2nd
- Rep. Gabe Vasquez: $293,000
New York’s 4th
- Rep. Laura Gillen: $596,000
Ohio’s 9th
- Rep. Marcy Kaptur: $266,000
Ohio’s 13th
- Rep. Emilia Sykes: $272,000
- 2024 nominee Kevin Coughlin (R): $2,715
Texas’s 34th
- Rep. Vicente Gonzalez: $369,000
Washington’s 3rd
- Gluesenkamp Perez: $608,000
Republican-Held Toss Ups
Rep. Juan Ciscomani of Arizona, one of the GOP’s better fundraisers last cycle, led the way in the eight Republican Toss Up seats. Only Rep. Gabe Evans of Colorado was outraised by a challenger.
Arizona’s 1st
- Rep. David Schweikert: $846,000
- 2024 candidate Marlene Galán-Woods (D): $326,000
- 2024 nominee Amish Shah (D): $9
Arizona’s 6th
- Ciscomani: $1.3 million
- Marine veteran JoAnna Mendoza (D): $817,000
Colorado’s 8th
- State Rep. Manny Rutinel (D): $1.2 million
- Evans: $811,000
Iowa’s 1st
- Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks: $1 million
Michigan’s 7th
- Rep. Tom Barrett: $901,000
Nebraska’s 2nd
- Rep. Don Bacon: $910,000
Pennsylvania’s 7th
- Rep. Ryan Mackenzie: $673,000
- Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure (D): $142,000, including a $24,000 candidate contribution
Pennsylvania’s 10th
- Rep. Scott Perry: $565,000
