Months Ahead of US Midterm Elections, Millions Are Being Shelled Out to Back Candidates

At present, the Democrats narrowly control the US Senate, thanks to Vice President Kamala Harris’ tie-breaking vote. Republicans hope to take control during the November elections, with the party out of the White House historically faring well during midterm elections.

Both the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) are reserving millions of dollars in television time in preparation for the midterm elections in November. That is in addition to the hundreds of millions already announced by their respective Super PAC organizations.

The NRSC has earmarked $53 million for advertising in key senatorial battles, according to The Hill, with the first commercials set to air Friday in Arizona and North Carolina.

Some $9.5 million is set to be spent by the NRSC in Georgia in an attempt to defeat Sen. Raphael Warnock, who will likely face NFL Hall of Famer Herschel Walker. Meanwhile, the Senate GOP will pour $8 million into the race against Sen. Mark Kelly in Arizona, and another $9 million will target Sen. Maggie Hassan in New Hampshire. The committee has also earmarked $3 million to try and oust Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada.

According to the latest FiveThirtyEight tracked polls, Walker leads Warnock by ten points. Kelly is in a dead heat with his likely opponent, leading Mark Brnovich by two points, though that poll dates back to January.

Georgia Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Raphael Warnock speaks during a drive-in rally Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020, in Atlanta

© AP Photo / Patrick Semansky

Hassan is leading against three out of four possible Republican candidates but trails Chuck Morse by two points. In Nevada, Cortez Masto looks to be in a close race with Republican Adam Laxalt, trailing by one point.

Apart from the Arizona poll, all of the aforementioned polls were conducted in April.

The NRSC is also spending millions fighting for two Senate seats in North Carolina, where the Republican incumbents are retiring. Approximately $9 million has been set aside to defend Sen. Ron Johnson in Wisconsin.

For its part, the DSCC plans to spend $33 million in six states, focusing on the same states as the NRSC other than North Carolina, where they have not earmarked any money as of yet.

But the money from the NRSC and DSCC represents only a fraction of what will be spent on the elections. The Republican Senate Leadership Fund PAC has designated $141 million for the midterms and the Democratic Senate Majority PAC is planning to spend $106 million in an attempt to maintain the Democrats’ slim control of the Senate.

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Sen. Lisa Murkowski

© AP Photo / J. Scott Applewhite

Currently, the Senate is split 50/50, with Vice President Kamala Harris being the deciding vote in the event of a tie.

Interestingly, the Senate Leadership Fund is spending money defending Sen. Lisa Murkowski in Alaska, who will be up against, among other candidates, the Trump-backed Kelly Tshibaka.

Alaska switched to an open-primary, ranked-choice voting system in 2020 and this will be the first election that Alaskans will vote using the new system. The Republican Murkowski voted for conviction during former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial, prompting Trump to find a candidate to back against her.

Figures have shown that 2018 was the most expensive midterm in history, exceeding $5.7 billion in campaign and PAC spending.