America First Action super PAC on Friday announced plans to spend $12.5 million in key midterm election races.
The Trump-aligned super PAC plans to invest $10 million in 10 House races in Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and West Virginia. The PAC’s affiliated nonprofit group, America First Policies, will spend $2.5 million supporting Republican candidates running for Senate in Missouri and North Dakota.
America First plans to use a variety of tactics to reach voters, including direct mail and radio, television, and digital advertisement campaigns.
“This is a critical first step and a sizable investment in helping Republicans hold the House and grow the Senate, and many of these races are in states that will be important to our efforts in 2020,” America First President Brian Walsh said in a statement. “Much like we did when we invested in the Georgia special election in 2017, and the Pennsylvania and Ohio special elections in 2018, we will use all the tactics we feel are necessary — television, radio, and digital ads, and direct mail–to help our candidates win in these competitive races.”
Republicans are facing a particularly tough challenge to keep the House, where some fifty GOP lawmakers are either resigning, retiring or seeking other office in 2018.
Democrats are expected to narrowly claim the majority in the House in November, but the Senate is widely considered to stay under Republican control. RealClearPolitics’ polling average of a generic congressional ballot has Democrats at a 6.6 percentage point advantage over Republicans.
President Trump is preparing an aggressive campaign schedule this fall that includes rallies and endorsements for Republican candidates across the nation and trips to at least seven different states over the next six weeks.
Trump plans to visit many of the states America First super PAC is targeting, including North Dakota and Missouri. Trump will spend at least 40 days on the road between Aug. 1 and Election Day. The president is also weighing the possibility of headlining fundraisers in Washington, D.C.
North Dakota and Missouri are likely to be crucial in the president’s goal of picking up more seats in the Senate. Trump won the electoral votes in both states in 2016 against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In North Dakota and Missouri, the Republican candidate is currently polling above the Democratic incumbent. Given Trump’s previous success in 2016, his endorsement and presence on the ground could help put the Republican challengers over the top.
Republicans are also outraising Democrats, which could be a boon leading up to Election Day. Since the onset of the 2018 election cycle, the Republican National Committee has brought in $277.2 million, compared to the Democratic National Committee’s $109 million. The RNC has roughly $42 million in cash on hand and, notably, has no debt.
