Ken Martin speaks at the Democratic National Committee Winter Meeting at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., on Sat., Feb. 1, 2025.
Rod Lamkey, Jr. | AP Photo
The Republican National Committee has almost five times the cash on hand as its Democratic counterpart, as Democrats seek to regain their footing following a disappointing 2024 cycle.
The RNC reported having $72 million on hand at the end of May, compared to just $15 million for the DNC, according to campaign filings out Friday.
While the RNC has for months held a cash advantage over the Democratic National Committee, the $57 million gap is the widest disparity between the two parties since at least July 2020, according to California Target Book’s Rob Pyers.
It’s still early, but the GOP’s cash edge could give the party an early boost as it looks to build out campaign infrastructure ahead of next year’s midterms.
“The single most important thing the DNC can and should be doing right now is raising money,” Democratic strategist Adrienne Elrod told CNBC.
The filings come as the DNC has faced internal tension since President Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
Earlier this month, leaders of two large labor unions each declined their nominations to continue serving on the committee, dealing a blow to Chair Ken Martin.
Martin has also overseen internal divisions over ex-DNC Vice Chair David Hogg’s bid to challenge sitting Democratic incumbents. Hogg stepped down from his role earlier this month amid backlash.
Some Democrats say that the fundraising gap underscores deeper concerns within the party.
“The base of the party and donors alike do not have confidence in the direction of the party,” said Cooper Teboe, a Democratic strategist in Silicon Valley. Teboe said that the party has not presented “a positive, inspiring vision.”
The DNC, however, points to a surge in grassroots support.
The party says it raised roughly $40 million in individual donations since Martin became chair in February, a record for that four-month period. The contributions go to a range of areas, according to the DNC, including “building up critical infrastructure from tech to organizing to in-state investments for critical, target races.”
“This is only the start, but it’s a record-setting start that allows Democrats to meaningfully invest in every part of the country,” Martin said in a statement.
The DNC’s war chest is roughly double what it held during the same period in 2017, suggesting there is time for them to catch up.
“The goals Chair Martin has set out — investing in all 50 states and building the state of-the-art infrastructure necessary to win back the White House in 2028 — are ambitious and necessary, but they can only be achieved by raising money,” Elrod said.
Looking ahead, Teboe said that Democrats may be successful in next year’s midterms “as a reaction to Trump’s overreach but it will take a new generation of voices to get the party out of this mess.”
“Those voices will emerge in the 2028 primary and we will have the chance to rebuild a stronger Democratic Party outside of the influence of the old guard that seems incapable of understanding what motivates normal Americans,” he said.
The Republicans’ money advantage comes after a 2024 election cycle during which Tesla founder Elon Musk poured nearly $300 million into helping elect Republicans.
Musk’s surge of donations to help elect Trump certainly took some pressure off the rest of the party’s fundraising apparatus.
It’s unclear what the RNC might have decided to pay for last year’s elections, were it not for Musk’s millions.
Musk last month said that he was going to do “a lot less” political spending in the future.
It’s also unclear how Trump will use the millions he has raised in a group of PACs since he won the November election.
Should Trump choose to donate to Republican candidates and get out the vote efforts next year, the RNC could again find itself under less pressure to shell out cash than the DNC.
But Trump’s financial support has traditionally not been geared towards helping the party at large. Rather, Trump has contributed relatively small amounts to help elect his closest allies.
He has also played a significant role in Republican primary races, endorsing MAGA candidates who, in some cases, have struggled to win the backing of moderate Republicans and independent voters.
