GOP Outspends Democrats in Wisconsin
Republican groups deployed over $10 million from cash reserves despite raising less than $500,000 in the final quarter.
By Madison Lewis ·
The Republican Assembly Campaign Committee spent approximately $7 million between July 1 and Oct. 19, a figure that dwarfs the $281,000 the group raised during the same period. This spending gap underscores the financial advantage held by GOP committees entering the final weeks of the Wisconsin legislative race.
The Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee raised roughly $5.1 million in that window, far exceeding the Republican total. On the Senate front, the State Senate Democratic Committee collected about $1.4 million, while the Committee to Elect a Republican Senate raised only $242,000. Despite the fundraising disparity, the Republican Senate group spent more than $3.4 million, outpacing the $1.8 million spent by their Democratic counterparts.
The disparity in spending stems from cash reserves accumulated earlier in the cycle. At the start of July, the RACC held more than $11 million in the bank. This balance followed reports of $9.5 million in donations from conservative billionaires Diane Hendricks and Liz Uihlein. The CERS group began the summer with around $5 million, a sum bolstered by a combined $6.75 million in gifts from Uihlein and Hendricks detailed in previous filings.
Democratic committees relied on large individual contributions to fund their operations. The ADCC spent $6.3 million, supported by $1.6 million in transfers from the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Major donors to the Assembly group included Gwendolyn Sontheim, who gave $500,000, and M. Quinn Delaney, who contributed $300,000. Real estate executive Gideon Friedman added $250,000 to the pool. The committee also processed a $2.5 million gift from Sarah O’Neil and approximately $3.5 million from relatives of the late Charlie Munger.
The State Senate Democratic Committee operated with a smaller war chest, starting July with about $1.4 million. Recent donations to this group included $300,000 from Delaney, $250,000 from Sontheim, and $150,000 from investor Ashish Shaskikant Patel. Earlier reports this year show O’Neill provided a combined $1 million to the Senate committee, while philanthropist Lynn Schusterman donated $250,000. Lynde Uihlein, a cousin of the GOP megadonors, gave a combined $450,000 to the Democratic Senate committee.
The financial reports reveal a pattern where GOP groups leveraged prior billionaire donations to maintain high spending levels even as current fundraising lagged. Democratic committees matched or exceeded Republican spending in the final quarter, but the Republican advantage in total disbursement highlights the impact of early-cycle cash cushions on the state legislative race.
