Cornyn raises more than $2M for Senate GOP

Sen. John Cornyn’s (R-Texas) joint fundraising committee raised more than $2 million in the third quarter of 2021 for Senate Republicans as the conference looks to raise cash for next year’s midterm battles. 

Cornyn, who is not up for reelection until 2026, transferred between $70,000 and nearly $100,000 of the funds he raised last quarter to the campaigns of all Senate Republicans who are running for reelection next year, according to a source familiar with the moves.

He also earmarked between $20,000 and $25,000 each for yet-to-be Republican nominees, including those running for open seats in Alabama, Missouri, North Carolina Ohio and Pennsylvania, and candidates challenging Democratic incumbents in Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, New Hampshire and Nevada.

The senator’s joint fundraising committee, dubbed the Cornyn Victory Fund, also transferred $350,000 to the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

With the third-quarter haul, Cornyn’s fund — which first started taking contributions last quarter — has raised more than $4 million.

Cornyn’s sizable fundraising haul comes as Republicans in Congress are gearing up for a competitive midterm election season next year, when the party is looking to take control of the House and Senate for the remaining two years of President Biden’s term in office.

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) announced on Thursday that it raised $25.8 million in the third quarter. The fundraising arm has raked in a total of $105 million this year through September.

The committee said it hit a record for September fundraising, bringing in $12.2 million. It now has almost triple the amount of cash on hand that it had this time last cycle, according to Punchbowl News.

Democrats, however, are also raking in significant fundraising dollars. The Democratic National Committee revealed last month that it has almost $68 million in the bank after the committee and its joint fundraising group raised $12.2 million in August.

–Updated at 12:18 p.m.