Republican National Committee tops Democratic rival in August fundraising battle

FIRST ON FOX: The Republican National Committee out raised the rival Democratic National Committee in August, as the two major party organizations raced to bring in campaign cash to spend during the final weeks of the 2022 midterm election cycle.

The RNC brought in $17.2 million last month, according to figures shared first with Fox News on Tuesday. The RNC’s haul outpaced the DNC, which a couple of hours earlier reported raising $15.5 million in August. The RNC says its August figures bring to $273.6 million the amount they’ve raised during the entire 2022 election cycle.

Republicans are aiming to win back majorities in the House of Representatives and Senate in November, as well as potentially make gains in the battle for governorships and state legislatures. 

National party fundraising is a key barometer of donor and voter enthusiasm ahead of the midterms, and the money raised can be used — among other things — for party staffing in key battlegrounds, grassroots and other get-out-the-vote efforts, campaign ads, and can be transferred to the party's House and Senate re-election committees.

The RNC says its cash on hand at the end of August was $24.2 million, down from $33.6 million a month earlier. In the closing stretch of an election cycle, national party committees campaign coffers shrink, as they make major final investments with their fundraising dollars. 

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"The Republican National Committee is not only outworking, but outraising our Democrat counterparts. More importantly, we are making strategic investments to elect Republicans up-and-down the ballot who will bring down inflation, tackle rising crime, secure our border, and get our country back on track," RNC chair Ronna McDaniel told Fox News.

The DNC spotlighted that it has hauled in $107.8 million so far this year, more money than in any other midterm year and almost twice as much as the committee raised at this point in the 2018 midterms. The DNC also touted that it continues "to enjoy broad support" from grassroots contributors, with a "record-breaking number of contributions from supporters in a midterm year." 

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The committee noted that 98% of donations over the past year have been below $200, and that August was the last month was the best midterm August for online fundraising in DNC history.

"The DNC has used our record fundraising success to make historic investments earlier in this midterm cycle than ever before. Overall, the DNC has already made at least $70 million in investments and commitments to the midterms — far exceeding the $30 million spent by the DNC on its entire 2018 midterm strategy," the committee highlighted.