North Carolina and Ohio: Big Hauls, Fast Burn

The latest FEC filings underscore just how much money is pouring into two of the cycle's marquee Senate contests. In the North Carolina Senate race, Democrat Roy Cooper reported $47.19 million in total receipts, the largest single haul in this filing batch. But Cooper has also burned through cash at a rapid clip, disbursing $34.71 million and leaving just $12.48 million on hand — meaning roughly 74 cents of every dollar raised has already gone out the door. That ratio matters heading into the final stretch: a campaign with a smaller reserve relative to its topline has less flexibility to respond to late shifts in the race without a fresh infusion of money.

In the Ohio Senate race, Democrat Sherrod Brown posted a smaller total than Cooper, at $38.57 million, but has preserved a thicker cushion — $16.23 million cash on hand against $22.34 million spent, or about 58 percent of receipts disbursed so far. The comparison between the two campaigns is instructive: both are spending heavily, a pattern typical of contested statewide races as paid media and field operations scale up, but Brown's filing shows more money held in reserve relative to what he has taken in, giving his campaign marginally more room to maneuver down the stretch than Cooper's filing suggests for his own.

House Fundraising: Ocasio-Cortez, Peltola, and Johnson

Three House filings in this batch illustrate sharply different approaches to cash management. New York Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, in the New York 14th District race, raised $37.43 million and spent $23.78 million, leaving $17.38 million on hand — the largest reserve of any House candidate in this set and a sum that exceeds the total receipts of several Senate campaigns listed here.

Alaska Democrat Mary Peltola, in the Alaska at-large race, raised nearly as much, $32.62 million, but her disbursements of $29.46 million have left her with just $3.16 million on hand — the tightest cash position of any candidate in this entire filing batch, Senate or House. A reserve that thin heading into the final weeks leaves little margin for last-minute ad buys unless fundraising accelerates sharply.

Louisiana Republican Mike Johnson, in the Louisiana 4th District race, reported the smallest haul of the three at $24.23 million, with $17.95 million spent and $7.53 million remaining — a more conservative burn rate than Peltola's, though his total reserve is less than half of Ocasio-Cortez's.

Senate Filings: Collins, Booker, Rogers, Warner, and Paxton

Among the remaining Senate filings, Maine Republican Susan Collins, in the Maine Senate race, reported $21.37 million raised against $18.56 million spent, leaving $5.39 million on hand — a high burn rate that puts her reserve on the lower end of this group.

The standout filing in this section belongs to New Jersey Democrat Cory Booker, in the New Jersey Senate race. Booker raised $20.66 million but spent only $9.28 million, leaving him with $22.57 million cash on hand — a reserve that actually exceeds his total receipts for the period and is the strongest cash position of any candidate in this entire batch. That kind of banked cash gives a campaign considerable latitude either to ramp up spending late or to sit on the advantage if the contest remains comfortable.

Michigan Republican Mike Rogers, in the Michigan Senate race, reported $20.57 million raised and $14.29 million spent, leaving $6.53 million on hand. Virginia Democrat Mark Warner, in the Virginia Senate race, raised $19.90 million and spent $17.92 million, a burn rate near 90 percent that leaves him with $7.53 million remaining. Texas Republican Ken Paxton, in the Texas Senate race, raised $19.50 million and spent $14.57 million, reporting $4.93 million cash on hand — the lowest reserve among all the Senate filings in this group, and a figure that will invite scrutiny given the size of the Texas media market he would need to compete in through Election Day.

Taken together, these filings show total fundraising figures tell only part of the story — how much a campaign keeps in reserve, relative to what it has already spent, may matter just as much as the headline haul when the final weeks arrive.