Republicans Pour Millions Into Traditionally Safe Senate Seats in Final Week Before US Midterms
Ahead of the US midterm elections, Republican-aligned groups have redirected millions of dollars into four Senate races in states that are usually safe for the party. It shows Republicans must defend seats they once considered secure.
Republicans are spending the last week before the US midterm elections, in which Congress is up for election, defending Senate seats that have historically been theirs but have suddenly become competitive. That is according to federal filings and sources familiar with the matter, as reported by Wired. It matters because the party is trying, at a minimum, to keep control of the Senate, the upper chamber of Congress.
Four states, rising spending
The focus is on Senate races in Kansas, South Carolina, Nebraska and even Mississippi. Operatives close to President Donald Trump say they do not expect Democrats to win these seats, but they concede that a growing amount of resources has to be diverted there. Trump carried these states by double digits in 2024.
The Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), a group aligned with Senate Republicans, spent $14 million across the four states in the penultimate week of the campaign, according to Wired's review of federal filings. The largest amount, more than $5 million, went to Kansas, where incumbent Republican senator Roger Marshall, a doctor, faces an unusually tough race. In early October, Trafalgar Group, a Republican pollster, found Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton one point ahead. Marshall has also been hit by negative stories about legal action against patients with unpaid bills and the time he spends in Florida.
In South Carolina, SLF spent roughly $5 million to help incumbent Darline Graham, who has struggled to energize Trump's base despite the president's endorsement in the primary. Nearly $3 million went to Nebraska to support senator Pete Ricketts, who trails in some polls, and just under $1 million to Mississippi for senator Cindy Hyde-Smith.
Trump visited Kansas and South Carolina last week. This week he has been in Mississippi and will return to Kansas and South Carolina.
Michigan for Democrats
Trump operatives are encouraged that Democratic candidates have lately not widened their leads in several key Senate races. Republicans' best pickup opportunity is Michigan, where Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed has had lingering problems with key voting blocs. A Democratic aide points to long-running tension between Arab and Black communities in the state. To rebuild part of the coalition, Barack Obama held a joint rally with El-Sayed in Detroit over the weekend.
