Outside donations flood N.C.'s U.S. Senate race

More than $7.3 million of the individual donations pouring into North Carolina's U.S. Senate race have come outside the state, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

• More than three-fourths of that money has been funneled into Democrat Cheri Beasley's campaign, and the remainder has gone to Republican U.S. Rep. Ted Budd.

Why it matters: All that outside money is a reminder of the importance of this race as Republicans and Democrats vie for control of Congress.

• The winner of North Carolina's Senate race will help determine which party controls the chamber and whether or not President Biden can achieve his priorities in the final year of his first term.

By the numbers:

• 55% of donations to Beasley's campaign came from out of state donors.
• 34% of donations to Budd’s campaign were from out of state donors.

Yes, but: This money doesn't account for contributions to Budd and Beasley by political action committees or other candidates.

• It also doesn't include outside groups spending on advertisements with a goal of swaying the election.
• These numbers also don't include unitemized contributions under $200. Beasley received $4.6 million in unitemized donations between April 2021 and and June 2022; Budd received $1.3 million in unitemized donations between January 2021 and June 2022.

Editor's note: This story was updated to include unitemized donations under $200.