Ryan announces record fundraising in 2017, transfers $32m to NRCC

The campaign team for House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) announced Thursday that the GOP leader raised $44 million in 2017, a record amount of money for a year without a major election.

Ryan is transferring $32 million of those funds to the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) ahead of the midterm elections, his team said in a release on Thursday.

That number includes $5 million alone raised in the fourth quarter of 2017, according to the release.

{mosads}”This eye-popping number is a testament to Speaker Ryan, House Republicans, and the agenda that they led the fight on in 2017,” Ryan’s campaign executive director, Kevin Seifert, said.

“It’s clear from this report that our supporters are engaged and enthusiastic about our prospects in 2018,” added finance chair Spencer Zwick.

Republicans have a 24-seat majority in the House. 

It’s typical for a sitting president’s party to lose seats in a midterm election, however, and President Trump’s low approval ratings have Democrats and Republicans alike believing that control of the House will be up for grabs this fall.