House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (left) and House Minority Whip Steve Scalise. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images
The Republicans' House campaign arm is putting up huge fundraising numbers as the party seeks to win back control of the lower chamber in the midterms.
Driving the news: The National Republican Congressional Committee raised nearly $80 million during the first six months of 2021, its best-ever first-half haul during an election off year, the committee tells Axios.
By the numbers: The NRCC's June fundraising total topped $20 million, and its total for the second quarter was more than $45 million.
- According to the committee, those are monthly and quarterly records for an election off-year.
- The NRCC heads into the back half of 2021 with $55 million in the bank, nearly double what it had at the same point in 2019.
- Those huge numbers were bolstered by contributions from GOP leadership: the campaign committee for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has given the NRCC $12.76 million this year. The committee for House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) has chipped in $8.39 million.
Between the lines: The political party controlling the White House has historically fared poorly in its president's first midterm election, and Republicans hope that trend holds and they regain majority next year after Democrats took control in 2018.