Chuck Schumer-Linked Group Trails GOP Counterpart By Massive Gap
The Senate Majority PAC (SMP), an outside spending group affiliated with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, entered 2026 with a huge fundraising disadvantage compared to its GOP rival.
SMP and its associated nonprofit groups reported raising $108 million in 2025, Punchbowl News first reported Thursday. The fundraising is $72 million short of the record $180 million raised by the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), a super PAC closely aligned with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, and groups affiliated with the fund during the same period.
The Thune-aligned fundraising powerhouse also finished 2025 with $100 million in the bank, about $25 million more than the $75 million SMP reported.
Although the Republican group’s financial advantage may diminish ahead of the November midterm elections, fundraising data indicates that Republicans are raising significant funds that could help fend off Democrats’ long-shot bid to regain control of the Senate.
“This is a testament to the strong leadership of John Thune and the incredible results Senate Republicans are achieving for working families across the country,” SLF Communications Director Chris Gustafson said in a statement. “We will take absolutely nothing for granted as we work to protect and expand the Republican majority this year and ensure Chuck Schumer remains in the minority where he belongs.”
Senate Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority, meaning Democrats would need to flip four GOP-held seats while successfully defending every seat represented by Democrats to regain control of the Senate.
SLF is eyeing pickup opportunities in Georgia and Michigan, both of which voted for President Donald Trump in 2024. Republicans also see Democratic-held seats in New Hampshire and Minnesota in play after former Republican Sen. John Sununu and former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya running in the two Senate races, respectively.
Democrats see their return to power as dependent on seats held by the Republican Party in North Carolina, Maine, Ohio and Alaska. (RELATED: Independent voters support congressional Democrats by an overwhelming 22-point margin, new poll finds)
WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 27: U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is followed by reporters as he walks through the Senate chambers of the U.S. Capitol on January 27, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The Thune-aligned group invested early in several battleground states to thwart Schumer’s midterm ambitions.
SLF announced a massive $42 million investment in Maine earlier in January to support Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who is widely seen as the most vulnerable Republican incumbent in the November midterm elections. Spending will be directed toward television and digital advertising, in addition to get-out-the-vote efforts in the final three months of the campaign, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Collins, the only Republican in the Senate whose former Vice President Kamala Harris was elected in November 2024, has not yet officially launched her campaign for a sixth Senate term. Democratic Maine Gov. Janet Mills and Bernie Sanders-backed oyster farmer Graham Platner are vying to challenge Collins in the general election. Trump, who has frequently criticized Collins, said the Maine Republican and four other Republican senators should lose reelection after the group voted to limit his war powers against Venezuela in January.
The SLF has also poured money into the Texas Senate race on behalf of Republican Sen. John Cornyn, who is engaged in a bruising three-way fight ahead of the fast-approaching March 3 primary. Thune, who supports Cornyn, told DCNF in early January that President Donald Trump was unlikely to support the contest.
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