Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

The battle for the Senate is shaping up to be competitive — and expensive.

Through the first three months of 2020, Democratic challengers outraised their incumbent Republican opponents in each of the four tightest Senate races labeled toss-ups by the Cook Political Report.

Those challengers have gradually chipped away at the incumbents’ cash advantage. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) had roughly three times more campaign cash than Democratic challenger Sara Gideon through the end of 2019. But Gideon outraised Collins $7.1 million to $2.4 million in the first quarter of 2020, leaving Collins with a $1 million cash advantage.

Collins faces a similar fundraising challenge to other incumbents. She relies heavily on PAC contributions and big-dollar donors, many of whom have already given the maximum allowed to her campaign. But she receives little from small donors. Through the first quarter, Collins raised less than $382,000 from those giving $200 or less, while Gideon brought in over $3 million from bite-sized donors. Unlike some of her colleagues who are more closely aligned with President Donald Trump, Collins has not benefited from joint fundraising events with the president.

Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) is raising serious money for her reelection campaign, banking $10.3 million through March. But she’s facing the Democrats’ star recruit Mark Kelly, who is raising more money than any other candidate for House or Senate. Kelly brought in a shocking $11 million in the first quarter. He’s raised over $31 million, with 46 percent of that haul coming from small donors. Kelly is also leading McSally in recent polls.

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Candidates who rely more on big-dollar fundraisers, like Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, will likely struggle to raise campaign cash amid the coronavirus pandemic. With in-person events cancelled, some wealthy donors are holding onto their money until they can meet face-to-face with candidates again.

That’s an advantage for candidates who raise money online, like Kelly. It’s bad news for Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who receives just 7 percent of his campaign cash from small donors. Tillis reported raising nearly $2.1 million in the first three months of 2020, compared to nearly $4.4 million for Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham.

National party-linked groups view the North Carolina showdown as one of the most important races in November. Influential super PACs are making their largest advertising investments in the Tar Heel state, and these groups spent heavily to influence Cunningham’s primary race last month.

In Colorado, former Gov. John Hickenlooper outraised Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) $4.1 million to $2.5 million in the first quarter. Gardner raked in nearly $1 million for his campaign and Trump’s reelection bid from a recent joint fundraising committee, but those funds haven’t been transferred yet. Gardner has an advantage in that he hasn’t spent much money. He has nearly $9.6 million in the bank, almost double that of Hickenlooper.



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