April 16, 2026, 9:13 a.m.
Republicans are staring down a potentially difficult election cycle but their incumbents held steady through the first three months of the year, according to fundraising reports filed Wednesday.
GOP incumbents continue to outraise Democratic incumbents, a pattern that will need to continue in order for the party to buck historical trends. At the same time, Republicans' offensive opportunities look limited. Democratic incumbents significantly outraised Republican challengers, a welcome sign for Democrats as the party has projected confidence that it will expand the battlefield this cycle.
The first three months of the election year are not necessarily a make-or-break fundraising quarter for candidates, but they still mark a pivotal time in a campaign’s life cycle that either enables a candidate to carry momentum into the summer or spurs questions about viability.
The 15 National Republican Congressional Committee Patriots, the committee’s most vulnerable incumbents, raised an average of $1.2 million and entered April with an average of $3.5 million on hand. By contrast, the 26 members named as Frontliners by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee raised $919,000 on average and had an average of $2.4 million on hand.
The 12 Democratic challengers on the committee’s Red to Blue roster raised an average of $1.5 million, holding an average of $2.3 million on hand. The nine Republican challengers in the NRCC's MAGA Majority program raised an average of $697,000 and had an average of $840,000 on hand.
Twenty-nine challengers outraised 24 incumbents across the competitive battlefield and in safe seats with competitive primaries. That includes four challengers outraising Democratic Rep. David Scott of Georgia, who faces spirited primary challenges due to his age and health concerns. On the battlefield, 12 Democratic challengers outraised Republican incumbents, compared to four GOP challengers outpacing Democratic incumbents. Democrat Rebecca Cooke outraised Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin, and Webb County Judge Tano Tijerina, a Republican, outdueled Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas during the first quarter.
The principal campaign committees are not required to file quarterly reports. The DCCC has narrowly outraised the NRCC this cycle, according to the most recent filings at the end of February. The Democratic committee raised $139.1 million throughout the cycle and reported $57.4 million on hand. The NRCC raised $136.3 million and had $57.6 million in the bank.
The Democratic-aligned House Majority PAC and its sister nonprofit, House Majority Forward, announced raising $69 million across the two groups in the first quarter. Their GOP counterparts, Congressional Leadership Fund and American Action Network, announced a quarterly haul of $56.6 million. CLF has historically outpaced HMP quarter-over-quarter, but the Democratic group has been the engine behind the Virginia redistricting referendum.
The DCCC and NRCC in recent months have both released their first list of preferred challengers in competitive seats. While not exactly endorsements, the lists signal to donors who the committees see as their top-tier candidates.
Below is a rundown on how those challengers fared, plus Hotline’s searchable database of campaign fundraising. Bolded names are the committees’ preferred candidates.
DCCC’s Red to Blue Target List
Arizona’s 2nd:
Rep. Eli Crane (R): $1.9 million
2024 nominee Jonathan Nez (D): $1.1 million
Arizona’s 6th:
Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R): $1.1 million
Marine Corps veteran JoAnna Mendoza (D): $2.4 million
Iowa’s 1st:
Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R): $1.5 million
2024 nominee Christina Bohannan (D): $2.1 million
Iowa’s 3rd:
Rep. Zach Nunn (R): $1.3 million
State Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott (D): $1.7 million
Michigan’s 4th:
Rep. Bill Huizenga (R): $635,000
State Sen. Sean McCann (D): $1 million
North Carolina’s 11th:
Rep. Chuck Edwards (R): $201,000
Farmer Jamie Ager (D): $959,000
Pennsylvania’s 8th:
Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R): $1.2 million
Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti (D): $1.5 million
Pennsylvania’s 10th:
Rep. Scott Perry (R): $1 million
2024 nominee Janelle Stelson (D): $2.2 million
Tennessee’s 5th:
Rep. Andy Ogles (R): $139,000
Columbia Mayor Chaz Molder (D): $615,000
Metro Nashville Councilor Mike Cortese (D): $273,000
Virginia’s 1st:
Rep. Rob Wittman (R): $919,000
Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor (D): $534,000
Virginia’s 2nd:
Rep. Jen Kiggans (R): $1.2 million
Former Rep. Elaine Luria (D): $1.8 million
Wisconsin’s 3rd:
Van Orden: $1.3 million
Cooke: $2.4 million
Eau Claire City Councilwoman Emily Berge (D): $176,000
NRCC’s MAGA Majority List
Arizona’s 1st
Former NFL kicker Jay Feely (R): $742,000
2024 nominee Amish Shah (D): $248,000, including a $40,000 candidate loan and a $894 candidate contribution
2024 candidate Marlene Galán-Woods (D): $439,000, including a $2,420 candidate contribution
Entrepreneur Jonathan Treble (D): $400,000, including a $91,816 candidate contribution
Former state Rep. Joseph Chaplik (R): $168,000, including a $50,000 candidate loan
Tech executive John Trobough (R): $392,000, including a $278,000 candidate loan and a $29,976 candidate contribution
California’s 13th:
Rep. Adam Gray (D): $962,000
Former Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln (R): $747,000
Iowa’s 2nd:
State Rep. Joe Mitchell (R): $627,000
State Rep. Lindsay James (D): $288,000
Pastor Clint Twedt-Ball (D): $132,000
Maine’s 2nd:
State Sen. Joe Baldacci (D): $317,000, with a $36,000 candidate loan and a $6,400 candidate contribution
Former congressional staffer Jordan Wood (D): $816,000, with a $174 candidate contribution
Auditor Matt Dunlap (D): $338,000
Former Gov. Paul LePage (R): $643,000
North Carolina’s 1st:
Rep. Don Davis (D): $1.1 million
2024 nominee Laurie Buckhout (R): $596,000
New York’s 3rd:
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D): $864,000
2024 nominee Mike LiPetri (R): $691,000
New York’s 19th
Rep. Josh Riley (D): $826,000
State Sen. Peter Oberacker (R): $461,000
Texas’s 28th:
Cuellar: $493,000
Tijerina: $600,000
Texas’s 34th:
Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D): $1.1 million
Former federal prosecutor Eric Flores (R): $1.2 million, with a $247,000 candidate loan and a $745 candidate loan
