Republicans have built an advertising advantage of more than $320 million in the seven Senate races rated tossups, while holding only a roughly $14 million edge across 21 similarly competitive House contests. The figures include ads already aired and future reservations through Oct. 18, underscoring how sharply the party’s spending priorities have diverged between the two chambers.
Republican spending exceeds Democratic spending in six of the seven toss-up Senate races. Texas accounts for the largest gap at about $141 million, followed by nearly $90 million in Ohio. Senate contests typically draw more money than House races, but the scale of the difference also reflects a strategic calculation: Republicans face growing doubts about retaining their House majority, while control of the Senate remains unsettled.
Texas has become the clearest example of the spending surge. Elon Musk gave $158 million to the Senate Leadership Fund in September through two contributions, and the group transferred matching amounts to Texas PAC one day after each donation. Texas PAC reported more than $100 million in spending supporting Republican nominee Ken Paxton and attacking Democrat James Talarico; Musk separately gave $10 million to another pro-Paxton political action committee.
Talarico is seeking to become the first Democrat to win a statewide Texas race in more than three decades, while Paxton is supported by President Donald Trump and has faced divisions within the state’s Republican Party after defeating Sen.
The spending shift extends beyond the traditional battlegrounds. Republican Senate groups announced $15 million for Nebraska, where Sen. Pete Ricketts faces independent Dan Osborn, and another Republican-aligned group added $7 million there.
House spending has also been reshuffled. The leading Republican House super PAC canceled advertising in four districts and increased investments in 16 others, while a Trump-aligned group withdrew nearly $1 million from a Nevada race. Democrats, meanwhile, launched a $17 million fundraising drive to expand advertising into districts once considered out of reach. The latest movements leave the Senate as the main target of the Republican money advantage, even as Democrats try to use the House pullback to widen the battlefield before Election Day.