Fredreka Schouten

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON – Two groups focused on keeping the Senate in Republican control collected nearly $17 million during the first three months of this year, according to figures first provided to USA TODAY.

In all, the groups — Senate Leadership Fund and One Nation — have raised $38.8 million so far in the election cycle, giving the chamber’s Republicans a financial boost in what will be a difficult election year for the party. The organizations were launched last year by Steven Law, a former chief of staff to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Senate Leadership Fund is a super PAC. One Nation is a nonprofit. Both can collect unlimited sums and were organized to compete with the Senate Majority PAC, a super PAC aligned with the Senate’s top Democrat, Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada. That group had collected $9.2 million through the end of February, its most recent filings show.

Senate Republicans faced a tough election long before controversial billionaire Donald Trump emerged as the GOP’s presidential front-runner. Republicans are defending twice as many seats at Democrats this year, including several in blue and swing states that voted for President Obama in 2008 and 2012. Many in the party's establishment fear Trump's divisive positions and comments could alienate women, minorities and suburban voters and jeopardize down-ballot races if he captures the White House nomination.

“Enthusiasm is really growing for ensuring that the Senate stays in Republican hands,” Law told USA TODAY in a recent interview. He said donors began committing to Senate races early last year, but contributors are more motivated now because “Republican hopes of winning the White House are far less robust than they were a year ago.”

Law’s groups already have begun to put serious money into key states with ads that focus more on local issues and less on the broader fights in Washington, such as the Senate stalemate over President Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland.

One Nation last month spent more than $1.1 million on ads touting legislative efforts by Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., to deal with the heroin crisis now plaguing parts of New England. Ayotte faces the state’s Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan in the November election.The group also has run ads that highlight the legislative records of Sens. Rob Portman of Ohio and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, two other swing-state Republicans on the ballot this year.

Senate Leadership Fund’s seven-figure donors have included Chevron, Houston Texans owner Robert McNair, hedge-fund founder Paul Singer and Home Depot co-founder Bernard Marcus.

Details on the group’s most recent round of fundraising and spending won’t be disclosed to the Federal Election Commission until later this month. As a nonprofit, One Nation does not have to disclose the sources of its money publicly.

More donor money is flowing into One Nation than into the super PAC arm. The nonprofit collected $11.8 million during the first three months of the year. Senate Leadership raised $5.1 million.