Vulnerable House Republicans Take Early Lead in Fundraising

For the past several election cycles, Democrats have had a significant fundraising advantage over Republicans. And even with massive investments from Republican super PACs, Democrats often still outspend Republicans in the most competitive contests — in fact, they had a spending advantage in all but two of the 20 most expensive House races of 2024.

But ahead of the 2026 midterms, vulnerable Republican incumbents have established an early lead in fundraising. During the first fundraising quarter of the year, Republicans in competitive races — those we rated Toss Up or Lean Republican — raised an average of $990,000. Democrats, meanwhile, raised an average of $520,000. The median House Democrat in a competitive district raised just $440,000, while the median Republican raised $940,000, more than twice as much.

It’s far too early to judge whether or not this trend holds. Republicans also started the 2024 cycle with a decent fundraising advantage, but by the first quarter of the election year, that advantage had been wiped out by Democrats.

And with Republicans clinging to a three-seat House majority, they’ll need all