Democracy Dies in Darkness

Harris to transfer nearly $25 million to help down-ballot Democratic candidates

The boost to House, Senate and state-level candidates follows a $540 million fundraising haul for the vice president over six weeks.

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Vice President Kamala Harris greets supporters during a campaign rally in Savannah, Ga., on Thursday. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post)
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Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee plan to transfer nearly $25 million to support down-ballot Democratic candidates in state and federal races this year, a significant boost to those efforts following record fundraising for her campaign this summer.

“If we want a future where every American’s rights are protected, not taken away; where the middle class is strengthened, not hollowed out; and a country where our democracy is preserved, not ripped apart, every race this November matters,” Harris campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement Tuesday. “The Vice President believes that this race is about mobilizing the entire country, in races at every level, to fight for our freedoms and our economic opportunity.”

The funds include $10 million transfers to both the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which are leading the efforts to win Democratic majorities next January on Capitol Hill.

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which focuses on winning control of state legislative bodies, will receive $2.5 million, while the Democratic Governors Association and the Democratic Attorneys General Association will each receive $1 million.

The Harris campaign has been flush since she took over the Democratic ticket, after weeks of poor fundraising earlier in the summer. The campaign announced in mid-August a $370 million reservation in television and digital advertising starting after Labor Day.

O’Malley Dillon announced Sunday that the campaign raised $540 million in six weeks, leaving the Harris operation with more than 2,000 staff and 312 offices in the battleground states in partnership with the Democratic National Committee, a far bigger footprint than the Trump campaign, which has put less emphasis on field organizing.

Democrats now control the Senate by a margin of 51 to 49 and have eight fewer seats than Republicans in the House.

Democrats are hoping that high turnout in blue states can help them retake the House this year, while the prospect of holding on to the Senate is more challenging. Republicans are all but guaranteed to win a Democratic-held seat in West Virginia this fall, and several other Democratic incumbents in states such as Ohio and Montana are in tough reelection fights.

“Like President Joe Biden before, when Vice President Kamala Harris and Tim Walz enter the Oval Office, they’ll rely on strong partners from the Hill to state legislatures to move America forward,” DNC Chair Jaime Harrison said in a statement. “We must win at all levels of government, up and down the ballot, to safeguard our freedoms and continue our economic progress — be it in red, blue, or purple America.”

Election 2024

Follow live updates on the 2024 election and Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump from our reporters on the campaign trail and in Washington

Presidential polls: Check out how Harris and Trump stack up, according to The Washington Post’s presidential polling averages of seven battleground states.

Senate control: Senate Democrats are at risk of losing their slim 51-49 majority this fall. The Post breaks down the eight races and three long shots that could determine Senate control.

VP picks: Harris has officially secured the Democratic presidential nomination chose chosen Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Midwestern Democrat and former high school teacher, to be her running mate. GOP presidential nominee Trump chose Sen. JD Vance (Ohio), a rising star in the Republican Party. Here’s where Vance and Walz stand on key policies.