Senate candidates including Trump-backed Kari Lake, Bernie Moreno in critical swing states Arizona, Ohio cash in MILLIONS in record cash hauls for first fundraising quarter of 2024

Senate candidates are raising millions in fundraising for what is expected to be a wildly expensive campaign season as the Senate race heats up.

Candidates had their fundraising deadline for the first three months of the year at midnight, and filings show some record fundraising numbers in battleground states as well as huge amounts of cash ready to be spent.

While much of the focus in 2024 is on the presidential race, Republicans are looking to flip the Senate in November, and they have a pretty favorable map to do so.

Democrats currently hold a one-seat majority in the Senate, but more Democratic senators are up for election in increasingly red states and those that voted overwhelmingly for Donald Trump in 2020, including Montana and Ohio.

The filings show that Democrats have largely elevated their Republican challengers, while some of those GOP candidates are putting millions of their own money into their bids.

But while big fundraising drives can help candidates prepare for November, hire staff and buy ads, it’s not a clear indicator of who will win.

Candidates have beaten opponents by double digits in fundraising only to suffer epic losses in the past.

However, the collection can also give a sense of who has momentum and which trips people prioritize in an election year.

Here’s some of the biggest cash in the Senate’s biggest battlegrounds in the first quarter of 2024:

Arizona

Democratic Congressman Ruben Gallego will face Republican Kari Lake for the open Arizona Senate seat after Sen. Kyrsten Sinema said she would not seek re-election after just one term.

Lake, a close ally of Trump who recently held a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago, raised $4.1 million in the first three months of the year.

99 percent of donations were under $200, according to her campaign. Her campaign ended in March with $2.5 million cash on hand.

Gallego raised $7.5 million and had more than $9.6 million cash on hand.

Arizona is one of the biggest battlegrounds in 2024 for both the Senate and the presidential race.

The latest The Hill/Emerson poll showed Gallego holding a two-point lead in the race.

Montana

In Montana, a state Trump won in 2020 by more than 16 points, Democratic Sen. Jon Tester is likely to face Republican Tim Sheehy in November.

On Monday, Tester’s campaign revealed that he raised more than $8 million in the first three months of the year, the most ever raised in the first quarter of a Montana Senate election.

Ninety-six percent of donations to Tester were for less than $100, and the average donation was less than $50, his campaign said.

His GOP challenger Tim Sheehy brought in $3 million including $500,000 borrowed by the candidate. He ended March with $1.9 million in his campaign war chest.

Ohio

In one of the tightest races in the country, Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown will face Republican Bernie Moreno in November in an increasingly red state.

Republicans see Ohio as a potential path to regaining the Senate.

In the first three months of the year, Brown raised a record $12 million, signaling just how tough a race the race will be. He ended March with more than $15.9 million cash on hand.

Meanwhile, Republican Bernie Moreno faced a tough three-way primary last month. The Trump-backed businessman raised $3.8 million including the $1.5 million he loaned his campaign. He ended March with $2 million in campaign cash.

The Real Clear Politics polling average shows Brown with a five-point lead over Moreno.

During the primary, Democrats promoted Moreno as a candidate, seeing him as an easier candidate to beat this fall, but the race is expected to be a blue one until Election Day.

Pennsylvania

In Pennsylvania, incumbent Democratic Sen. Bob Casey will face Republican Dave McCormick, who ran and lost in the 2022 GOP primary.

The Real Clear Politics average of polls shows Casey holding a lead of more than five points in the race. Trump endorsed McCormick as rally in Schnecksville, PA on Saturday.

Casey leads McCormick in fundraising. He raised $5.6 million through April 3 and has more than $6.2 million cash on hand.

McCormick raised $5.3 million in the first three months of the year through April 3, including a loan from his own campaign of $970,900. He also has $6.2 million cash on hand.

Wisconsin

In the battleground state of Wisconsin, incumbent Democrat Tammy Baldwin raised $5.4 million in the first three months of the year. She has more than $10 million cash available to her.

Her opponent, Trump-backed Eric Hovde, raised $9 million in the first quarter of the year, but filings show that includes Hovde lending his campaign as much as $8 million. Hovde has $5.3 million cash on hand.

The latest The Hill/Emerson poll from mid-March shows Baldwin with a three-point lead in the race.

Nevada

Nevada Republicans will choose their Senate candidate in June, and whoever wins the primary will face Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen in November in what is expected to be a close race.

Sam Brown, a military veteran, is the current front-runner in the GOP race and backed by several Republicans. Nevada Assemblyman Jim Marchant is also running in the primary.

Rosen raised $5 million and had more than $13 million cash on hand.

Brown raised $2.4 million and had $2.3 million on hand at the end of the quarter. Marchant raised less than $50,000 and had roughly that available for his campaign.

The Real Clear Politics average of polls shows Rosen with a four-point lead over Brown. In a race against Marchant, she has a lead of almost 10 points.