The final Federal Election Commission reports before the November midterm elections are due by midnight Friday. Candidates and some outside groups have already begun releasing their fundraising hauls before the deadline, as a potential sign of confidence in their war chests in the final stretch before Election Day.
FEC reports offer some window into which candidates have momentum on their side in the final 19 days before the elections. Republican groups are still dominating in the fundraising game over their Democratic counterparts.
But most individual Democratic Senate candidates are vastly outraising their Republican competitors. As of publication, some campaigns have not yet released their fundraising figures.
Here are the top takeaways.
GOP groups boast record-breaking quarters
Outside GOP groups continued their trend of raising huge amounts of money aided by billionaires, controlling the White House and both chambers of Congress.
The Congressional Leadership Fund, affiliated with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), announced it raised a record-breaking $94.4 million in the third quarter. Together with its sister organization, American Action Network, the two groups have raised $370 million this election cycle, the most money CLF and AAN have ever raised. The CLF has a total of $155.2 million cash on hand.
“We are actively deploying resources to shape the competitive map and keep Democrat extremists out of power,” said CLF President Chris Winkelman.
The Senate Leadership Fund, affiliated with Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), raised $273 million during the third quarter and has $155 million on hand. More than half of the money raised from the SLF came from tech billionaire Elon Musk, who gave the group $158 million in September, which is among the largest political contributions ever.
Musk has notably pulled back from public-facing rallies he attended in 2024 to using his vast wealth to aid the GOP.
Texas could become the most expensive Senate race ever
James Talarico, the Democratic nominee in Texas’s open Senate seat, announced that he raised $64 million in the third quarter, a record that shatters South Carolina Democrat Jaime Harrison’s 2020 third-quarter haul when he raised $57 million. Harrison lost the Senate race to the late Sen. Lindsey Graham by double digits.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and affiliated groups raised just $18 million in the same time period. While the sum is his personal best this cycle, it doesn’t come close to the figures that Talarico is pulling in. Republican groups have poured at least $350 million into the Texas Senate race to boost the controversial Paxton over Talarico.
Spending this week in the Lone Star State surpassed $500 million, making it the second nonpresidential race to eclipse that number. The most expensive on record is the 2024 contest between Sherrod Brown and Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH), surpassing $530 million.
President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have been present in the state for multiple rallies, but Talarico continues to lead in polling and fundraising. A RealClearPolitics poll average shows Talarico leading by 2.6 points, 48.1% to 45.5%.
Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper rakes it in as Michael Whatley goes dark
Roy Cooper, the Democratic Senate nominee in North Carolina, announced he hauled in more than $19.5 million in the third quarter as his Republican opponent, Michael Whatley, has paused future TV advertisements in the state.
Cooper has consistently led Whatley in polling and fundraising, leading some Republicans to privately concede the race is a lost cause. The SLF has paused its future TV advertisements in the Tar Heel State to invest more money in Kansas. The Whatley campaign claimed this was just a “temporary pause and we’ll be back on the air shortly with our closing message.”
Trump will stump in the state on Tuesday in another attempt to boost Whatley.
Democrat Mary Peltola sets Alaska record
Former Rep. Mary Peltola announced she raised $17 million in the third quarter, which her campaign said was a record third-quarter sum for a Senate candidate in Alaska. The amount is more than twice the $7 million she raised in the second quarter, signaling growing momentum in her race.
The Cook Political Report rates the battle between Peltola and Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) as a toss-up. Trump recently stumped in the state this week to help boost Sullivan.
But strategists concede that even a Trump boost may not move the needle for Sullivan.
Kansas is going to be pricey in the home stretch
Kansas Democratic Senate nominee Adam Hamilton and his affiliated fundraising committees hauled in $10.6 million in the third quarter, a notable sum for a Midwest Democrat in a state that Trump won in all three of his presidential campaigns.
In the second quarter, Hamilton raised just $3.66 million. But anger over rising gas and diesel prices due to the Iran war has led Democrats to feel bullish about taking down Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS). The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Hamilton are placing a coordinated ad buy starting on Tuesday, according to Medium Buying.
Trump will rally in the state on Monday as part of his midterm campaign blitz.
REPUBLICANS IN TROUBLE GO ALL IN ON TRUMP SUPPORT
Sen. Jon Ossoff’s fundraising prowess doesn’t slow down
Sen. Jon Ossoff’s (D-GA) ability to rake in millions of dollars continued in the third quarter as he raised $33 million and has $26 million cash on hand.
His opponent, Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), has not yet posted his figures but has consistently trailed Ossoff in fundraising. Trump will appear in Georgia on Friday to stump with Collins, but the race appears to have gotten away from Republicans.
The Cook Political Report rates the seat as “Likely Democratic” despite Trump having won Georgia in the 2024 presidential race. In a sign that Democrats feel confident Ossoff will prevail, the Senate Majority PAC pulled its Georgia advertising for the week.
Mike Rogers hauls in millions in tough battle against Abdul el Sayed
Republican Michigan Senate candidate Mike Rogers pulled in $9.7 million in the third quarter and had $6.5 million cash on hand. The amount was nearly three times the $3.2 million raised across authorized committees in the second quarter of 2026.
El Sayed is narrowly leading Rogers, 48.4% to 45.7%, according to the RealClearPolitics poll average. Trump will visit Michigan on Oct. 25 to stump with Rogers, who broke with him over the U.S. trade war with Canada.
Trump has repeatedly slammed el Sayed and referred to him as a “Muslim Brotherhood guy” on Thursday.
El Sayed has yet to announce his quarterly total as of Thursday afternoon.
How the 2028 hopefuls stacked up in the third quarter
Several presidential hopefuls are sitting on millions of dollars ahead of the 2028 race. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) raised $4 million in the third quarter and had $17.3 million cash on hand.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) raised roughly $1.8 million and had a staggering $22.6 million cash on hand. Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) pulled in more than $13.3 million in the filing period between June 6 and Sept. 14.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said he probably isn’t running in 2028, but that hasn’t stopped him from amassing a strong war chest. Sanders raised $1.4 million in the third quarter and ended the period with $22.4 million on hand. He sent $250,000 to Florida Democratic Senate nominee Angie Nixon’s Victory Fund and $300,000 to the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.
George W. Bush donates to Susan Collins
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) raised $5.2 million during the third quarter in her battle against Democrat Troy Jackson and had $5.39 million cash on hand.
But in a surprise twist, former President George W. Bush donated $3,500 to her campaign, her filings show. Bush recently helped fundraise for Senate Republican candidates including Sens. Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Jon Husted of Ohio, Rep. Ashley Hinson of Iowa, former Sen. John Sununu of New Hampshire, Rogers of Michigan, and Michele Tafoya in Minnesota. Paxton was not included.
The Bush family has deep ties to Maine, with the Bush family owning an estate in Kennebunkport, Maine, for more than a century. It served as the summer house for former President George H.W. Bush. The late president’s nephew, Jonathan Bush, ran in the gubernatorial primary in Maine this year.
Jackson is very narrowly leading Collins, 48.6% to 47.3%, according to a RealClearPolitics poll average.