Campaign Finance

Bipartisan Bill Bars Campaign Funds for Sex Scandals

July 28, 2026 at 4:15 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Federal politicians would be barred from using campaign contributions to fight or settle sexual misconduct allegations under a bill announced Tuesday by two House members from opposite sides of the political spectrum,” the Washington Post reports.

“The proposal, from Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), aims to further shape the debate over how Congress should move forward from a spate of sexual misconduct scandals this spring, which prompted the creation of a bipartisan working group to revise the policies protecting Capitol Hill staffers.”

GOP Dark Money Fight Could Expose Trump Entity

July 27, 2026 at 6:20 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“During President Trump’s second term, Republicans have escalated their attacks on hard-to-trace fundraising methods used by left-leaning groups,” CBS News reports.

”Now, those efforts could force more disclosure for a project linked to Mr. Trump himself: Freedom 250, the entity behind America’s 250th birthday celebration.”

Susan Collins Holds Enormous Cash Edge in Maine

July 25, 2026 at 12:56 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Even before Graham Platner withdrew from Maine’s Senate race in disgrace this month, he and his Democratic allies were severely outmatched in the race for cash,” the New York Times reports.

“Now his replacement, Troy Jackson, inherits a difficult situation: He has just over four months to erect a defense against a towering Republican super PAC apparatus that is intent on re-electing Senator Susan Collins.”

Ken Griffin Gives $10M to Byron Donalds’ Campaign

July 24, 2026 at 1:03 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Billionaire GOP donor Ken Griffin is contributing $10 million to Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds, who is the overwhelming favorite to get his party’s nomination,” NBC News reports.

“Donalds, a member of Congress, has raised roughly $90 million to date; he has a commanding money lead and polling advantage over a handful of other candidates in the GOP primary. The $10 million check from Griffin, the founder of the Miami-based hedge fund Citadel, is by far the biggest contribution Donalds has received since he launched his bid for governor.”

Democrats Have a Massive Outside Cash Problem

July 22, 2026 at 12:53 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Democrats are apprehensive that Republicans’ massive outside spending advantage could erase the prospects of a blue wave heading into the midterms,” Politico reports.

”The three main GOP party committees and their two caucus-aligned super PACs reported $657 million cash on hand at the end of June, according to the latest filings with the Federal Election Commission. That’s nearly double the $334 million held by their Democratic rivals.”

”And those disparities don’t even account for the largest potential GOP money bomb, the MAGA Inc. super PAC linked to President Donald Trump, which reported over $400 million in the bank as of a few weeks ago. Democrats have no equivalent to MAGA Inc.”

Bloomberg: Trump has spent 0.6% of his $401 million super PAC to boost GOP.

Democrats Narrow GOP Cash Advantage

July 22, 2026 at 10:44 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Republicans are heading into the fall campaign season with a lopsided cash advantage across their flagship committees and super PACs, but Democrats narrowed the gap with stronger fundraising by individual candidates,” the Washington Post reports.

”The latest campaign finance reports showed the GOP’s wealth concentrated in the hands of President Donald Trump and his advisers, as super PACs and party committees they control dominated the party’s fundraising. Democrats, by contrast, spread their contributions across individual congressional candidates, making them better-equipped than their head-to-head opponents.”

Washington Post: Democrats chip away at GOP cash lead centered on Trump.

Trump’s Massive PAC Still Not Spending on GOP Candidates

July 21, 2026 at 6:20 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump’s war chest reached $400 million by the end of June. It still isn’t spending to boost GOP candidates for the midterms,” Politico reports.

David Hogg Torches Top Democratic Campaign Arm

July 20, 2026 at 5:53 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Ex-DNC vice chair David Hogg torched the top campaign arm of the Democratic Party as being ‘evil’ and picking ‘terrible candidates.'” Mediaite reports.

Said Hogg: “We’re an organization — imagine if there was a non-evil version of the DCCC that existed. No offense. Like, we need their funding in general elections, but man, they really know how to pick terrible candidates sometimes. But it’s fine. They usually lose.”

A Win for American Democracy

July 20, 2026 at 6:00 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

David Frum: “This is not a sentence written often lately, but the U.S. Supreme Court has just done a great service to American democracy.”

“On June 30, the Court struck down federal limits on the amount of money that political parties can spend in coordination with individual federal candidates. Some early reports on National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission represented the 6–3 decision as a victory for big money. To some extent, it is—but for once, in a good way.”

“Years of campaign-finance reforms have curbed the power and leverage that the Republican and Democratic Parties have had in elections, which has handily undermined the quality of candidates on the ballot (see: Graham Platner). Letting the parties spend more should helpfully restore some of their leverage. When the parties were stronger, they somehow managed to assemble hundreds of contending interest groups into just two broad coalitions. They negotiated compromises and reconciled differences. Who has that job now?”

Ken Paxton Scrambles to Win Back the Big-Dollar Donors

July 20, 2026 at 2:01 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Wall Street Journal: “Many can’t stomach Paxton—a populist firebrand dogged by legal and ethical scandals and known for targeting corporate interests. But with control of the Senate in the balance and a well-funded Democrat on the other side, some are deciding they can’t afford to sit this one out. Paxton’s success hinges, in part, on winning them back.”

“He has his work cut out for him. After Paxton’s nomination, donors at one major Republican fundraising organization asked that their money not go to him—because his office had sued so many of them, and because they feared he could misuse it, according to a person familiar with the conversations.”

DC Insiders Face Temptation to Bet On Politics

July 18, 2026 at 10:38 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Wall Street Journal: “White House officials are among those grappling with how deeply political betting has worked itself into the fabric of Washington, a town that runs on information traded in the marble halls of Congress, on the sidelines of campaign events and at after-work happy hours on K Street.”

“The exploding popularity of prediction markets such as Polymarket and Kalshi with young staffers who have access to this information has created a pervasive temptation that is growing in advance of November’s elections.”

AIPAC Blocks Funds to Democrats Over Aid Vote

July 17, 2026 at 8:24 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“AIPAC, the powerful pro-Israel lobbying group, appeared on Friday to have cut off contributions on its political web portal to House Democrats who voted this week to end U.S. aid to Israel, punishing them financially for a stance it strongly opposed,” the New York Times reports.

“That group included 15 House Democrats whom AIPAC had endorsed for re-election in November.”

Democrats Rake in Cash in Battleground Races

July 17, 2026 at 1:05 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Punchbowl News: “House Democrats are rolling in cash with just 109 days until the midterms.”

“A new trove of campaign-finance reports released this week showed a concerning reality for the GOP: Democratic candidates raked in gargantuan amounts of money last quarter in key battleground districts.”

“In fact, at least 25 GOP incumbents — and Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-CA) — were outraised by a Democratic challenger during that critical period, per a Punchbowl News analysis of FEC data. The majority of that GOP group hold competitive districts. And 11 of the Republicans had less cash on hand than their Democratic challenger.”

“This is a real danger sign for the GOP. Some of these House Democratic challengers raised more money last quarter than Senate candidates. And lackluster fundraising by Republican candidates is stretching the House map in Democrats’ favor.”

New York Times: Democratic Senate candidates trounce Republicans in fund-raising.

House Democratic Challengers Are Printing Money

July 17, 2026 at 5:12 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Democratic challengers in several key U.S. House races put up massive fundraising numbers in the second quarter, closing some of the GOP’s cash advantage in battlegrounds across the country,” Politico reports.

”Seven of the 10 best-fundraising House candidates across competitive districts were Democratic challengers… All seven outraised the GOP incumbents they are facing in the 2nd quarter.”

Cornyn Donors Largely Stay Away From Paxton

July 17, 2026 at 5:02 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Few major donors to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn have thrown their weight behind GOP Senate nominee Ken Paxton since the Texas attorney general defeated Cornyn in a May runoff, per an Axios analysis of newly released federal campaign finance data,” Axios reports.

“Paxton likely must rally Cornyn supporters to his side to defeat Democrat James Talarico, a state legislator from Austin and a formidable fundraiser seeking to appeal to moderate voters.”

USA Today: James Talarico challenges Ken Paxton to 3 televised Texas Senate debates.

DNC Officers Asked to Sign NDAs

July 16, 2026 at 7:32 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Democratic National Committee asked its leadership team to sign non-disclosure agreements before a recent meeting about the party’s finances,” Axios reports.

“The move — a break from past practice for such officers — underscored DNC chair Ken Martin’s sensitivity about the party’s money woes and the persistent criticism about his leadership.”

George Conway’s Congressional Bid Cost Him $2 Million

July 16, 2026 at 7:01 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“George Conway, the former conservative lawyer turned Democrat, loaned his campaign $2 million to finish fifth in the crowded Democratic primary in New York’s 12th Congressional District,” NOTUS reports.

“He reported the personal loan in a Federal Election Commission report published on Wednesday. Micah Lasher, a state assembly member, won the primary in June and is expected to win the general election in the deep-blue Manhattan district.”

Graham Platner’s Old Campaign Has a Massive Cash Stash

July 16, 2026 at 6:35 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Graham Platner quit Maine’s U.S. Senate race last week after being accused of sexual assault, but his campaign committee remains flush with cash,” NOTUS reports.

“Platner’s campaign had more than $1.7 million cash on hand as of June 30, according to a new financial filing with the Federal Election Commission, as he had raked in cash from enthusiastic donors across the country.”

“But that money, were Platner’s campaign to give it away, may be politically toxic.”