Democrats Ossoff, Warnock blow past fundraising records in Georgia Senate races

In the Georgia runoff races that will determine party control of the U.S. Senate, Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have blown past all-time fundraising records, with each candidate raking in more than $100 million over the last two months, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

Republicans, who currently hold 50 seats in the Senate, need to win just one of the two runoff contests on Jan. 5 to retain a majority. The Democrats would need to win both races to reach 50. In the case of a 50-50 split, Sen. Kamala Harris would become the tie-breaking vote as vice president, should she take office on Jan. 20.

Ossoff, who is challenging incumbent Republican Sen. David Perdue, amassed $106.8 million between Oct. 16 and Dec. 15, more than any Senate candidate in history.

Warnock, opposing incumbent GOP Sen. Kelly Loeffler, collected $103.4 million over the same two-month period.

Perdue reported raising $68 million over that period for his race against Ossoff, while Loeffler took in $64 million in her bid to hold off Warnock..

The previous fundraising record in a Senate campaign for a full quarter was $57.9 million — recorded this year by South Carolina Democrat Jamie Harrison in his losing battle against Republican incumbent Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Both Democrats in the Georgia races have been spending money almost as fast as they can raise it, leaving Democrats and Republicans on a more equal footing for the rest of the race.

Ossoff reported $17.5 million cash on hand left at the end of the reporting period Dec. 16. Perdue was not far behind, with $16 million in the bank.

Warnock reported $22.8 million in the bank as of Thursday, while Loeffler had $21.3 in cash.

Small donors contributing less than $200 represented less than half of the totals raised for both Ossoff and Warnock.