DCCC Tops in Total Take, NRCC Gets the Small Donors

Political parties don’t really get the luxury of an off year, as demonstrated by reports filed Friday with the Federal Election Commission.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee reported raising $3.5 million and the National Republican Congressional Committee took in $2 million in February, according to reports that the two House campaign organizations filed on Friday with the Federal Election Commission.

The DCCC, which is defending a Democratic majority that presently includes 254 seats (there are three vacancies in Democratic-held districts), spent $2.6 million in February and began this month with $2.9 million left to spend. The NRCC spent $1.3 million and had $1.9 million cash-on-hand.

The DCCC received more of its February funds from larger itemized contributions — those that aggregate to $200 or more — than from smaller donations that are unitemized. About 30 individuals gave the DCCC the maximum annual contribution of $30,400. The NRCC raised more of its February dollars — $885,000 in all — from individuals in smaller unitemized increments.

Both committees reported making independent expenditures last month in New York’s vacant 20th District, where the winner of a March 31 special election will succeed Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. That spending — which is unlimited and not made in coordination with candidate campaigns — has intensified this month in that race, which pits Republican James Tedisco and Democrat Scott Murphy.

Both House campaign committees are shouldering significant debts that they incurred in the late stages of the 2008 campaign. The DCCC has $15.1 million in debt and the NRCC has $6.4 million in debt.

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