The frenzied fundraising underscores the high stakes for the narrowly divided Senate. If Ossoff and Warnock win both seats in the January 5 runoffs, their party will control the chamber since Vice President-elect Kamala Harris can break ties in the Senate.
And new data show television, radio and digital advertising to influence the runoffs already has rocketed past half a billion dollars since Election Day — putting the contests on track to become two of the most expensive Senate races in US history.
Ossoff had led the spending with more than $100 million in ad buys and future reservations, according to data from Kantar’s Campaign Media Analysis Group. Warnock has bought nearly $88 million in advertising — exceeding the spending by Loeffler and Perdue, according to Kantar
Warnock and Loeffler each had more than $20 million in available cash for the final sprint to the January 5 runoffs, Thursday’s filings show. Loeffler has tapped her personal fortune to help fund the race. Warnock’s reliance on small donors — more than half of his contributions from individuals came in amounts of $200 or less — provides him with a potential pool of donors to tap for more donations before hitting contribution limits.
Ossoff had about $17.5 million remaining in cash reserves. Nearly half his contributions came in small amounts of $200 or less.
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