RNC Raises Record Off-Year $132.5 Million in 2017

The Republican National Committee (RNC) announced Wednesday that it has raised a record $132.5 million in 2017, the most for any off-year election cycle.

RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a statement:

Our strong fundraising numbers reflect voters’ optimism and continued support as President Trump fulfills his promises to the American people. In his first year, President Trump delivered a historic tax cut to the middle-class, slashed regulations, and grew our economy. We look forward to electing more Republican leaders to Congress who will support President Trump’s winning agenda on behalf of the American people.

The RNC raised $11.1 million in December and has a total cash on hand of $38.8 million, with no debt, while the Democratic National Committee (DNC) has $6.1 million in debt. The RNC has more than doubled the DNC fundraising for 2017; the DNC only fundraised $65.9 million this past year. The Republican party has more than six times cash on hand as well. In total, the RNC has $38.8 million in net cash, while the DNC only has $423,000.

Tom Steyer, a billionaire hedge fund manager and Democratic mega-donor, said in an interview last week that he refuses to donate to the Democratic Party after the “Schumer Shutdown” debacle.

“I don’t have a litmus test on any one thing, but I do have a litmus test for elected officials standing on principle and doing the right thing, looked at holistically. And I want to say that after the DACA vote I have decided not to give anything to the national party committees,” Steyer argued.

Steyer has donated more than $400,000 to the three Democratic groups since 2015, although he believes that his own organization can more effectively push his goals through than the DNC. Steyer explained:

At this point what we’ve seen from the party committees is we are at a point where we can definitely stand up for what we think is right more directly by the programs that we’re doing. I know that people focus on these FEC controlled election contributions but overwhelmingly, what we do is go directly to the American people.