What They’re Saying: Senate Democrats “Report Record” Q1 Numbers, “Hit Airwaves Backed By Big Fundraising Hauls”

The Hill: “The trend leaves their incumbents in a strong position as their Republican challengers work to get through crowded primary fields.”

Bloomberg: “They’re getting a head start on general-election messaging while some Republican challengers focus on advancing from their primaries.”

News coverage is highlighting how Senate Democrats are “raking in huge sums for their re-election campaigns” and “touting record first-quarter fundraising hauls” – using their resources to get “a head start on general-election messaging while some Republican challengers focus on advancing from their primaries.”

See for yourself:

Bloomberg: Democratic Senators Hit Airwaves Backed by Big Fundraising Hauls
By Kenneth P. Doyle
April 15, 2022

• Democratic incumbent senators are raking in huge sums for their re-election campaigns, led by Georgia’s Raphael Warnock, who is on pace to bring in a record first-quarter haul.

• They are using their ample funds to buy and reserve TV time at the lowest unit rate amid an expected sea of outside group spending.

• Warnock raised $13.6 million from January through March and had $25.6 million in cash, his campaign announced Thursday ahead of tonight’s deadline for filing first-quarter fundraising reports.

• Sen. Mark Kelly’s been running TV ads since February and is likely to have enough money to stay on the air through the November election.

• The Arizona Democrat’s campaign announced a haul of $11.3 million in the first quarter of 2022, with $23.2 million in cash on hand on March 31. He’s already bought nearly $5 million worth of air time, according to the ad tracking firm AdImpact. Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), have also turned in strong fundraising numbers and hit the airwaves.

• They’re getting a head start on general-election messaging while some Republican challengers focus on advancing from their primaries.

• The millions of dollars in support they’re receiving will allow these incumbents to “build sophisticated message campaigns so voters have a complete picture of what’s in their heart as well as what’s in their voting record,” said Martha McKenna, a Democratic media consultant.

• In an initial TV ad, Kelly talked about his childhood, his family living paycheck to paycheck, and his work to become a Navy pilot and astronaut. Another ad launched by Kelly on Tuesday also touts his NASA experience, saying it makes him “a different kind of senator” focused on results, rather than party politics.

• Like Kelly, Warnock won his seat in a special election in the last cycle and continued a furious pace of fundraising through his first two years in office.

• Warnock’s first ad, which launched last week, describes his empathy as a pastor and ends with him saying to Georgians: “I see you. I hear you. I am you.”

• Cortez Masto, who raised $4.4 million in the first quarter and had $11 million on hand, ran TV ads in March highlighting how her votes for Covid-19 relief legislation helped workers in Nevada’s hospitality industry, which was devastated by a sharp decline in tourism. She’s reserved $10 million worth of air time for future TV ads.

• Hassan, who raised $4.3 million and had $7.5 million on hand, ran TV ads last fall emphasizing her support for bipartisan legislation offering tax credits for business investment… she’s reserved $13 million worth of ad time in the fall.

The Hill: Senate Democrats report record fundraising hauls in first quarter
By Julia Manchester
April 11, 2022

• Senate Democratic incumbents in competitive races are touting record first-quarter fundraising hauls.

• In Arizona, Sen. Mark Kelly (D), who is facing what stands to be an uphill reelection bid, raised $11.3 million in the first quarter, bringing his cash on hand total to $23.2 million.

• Meanwhile, in Nevada, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D) raked in $4.4 million during the first quarter. Her reelection campaign boasts $11 million cash on hand.

• And in New Hampshire, Sen. Maggie Hassan (D), raised $4.3 million in the same time period, leaving her with $7.5 million in the bank.

• All three of the incumbent senators also reported massive fundraising hauls in the last quarter of 2021.

• Democrats say the trend leaves their incumbents in a strong position as their Republican challengers work to get through crowded primary fields.

• The party also pointed to fundraising totals from challengers to Republican incumbents, including Reps. Val Demings (D-Fla.) and Cheri Beasley (D-N.C.). Demings raked in $10 million in the first quarter, bringing her cash on hand total to $13.1 million. Beasley raised over $3.6 million during the same period and has more than $5 million in the bank.

• “While Republicans’ flawed candidates attack each other in brutal, expensive primaries, Senate Democrats’ record-setting fundraising demonstrates the strong grassroots support behind our campaigns — and the enthusiasm for Democrats’ work to cut costs for working families and fight back against the GOP agenda of higher taxes, higher health care costs, and an end to Medicare and Social Security,” said Eli Cousin, a spokesperson for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

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