Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) announced he would transfer $4.5 million to the National Republican Congressional Committee, marking his largest single transfer to the House GOP’s fundraising arm since taking the gavel last October.
Johnson announced the transfer during a closed-door meeting with House Republicans on Wednesday morning, a source familiar confirmed to the Washington Examiner. The transfer comes as GOP leaders turn their focus to beefing up the campaign arm ahead of the November elections.
During that same meeting, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) announced a million-dollar match program, telling members that for every member who gives $50,000 to the NRCC, he would match the funds.
Scalise exceeded that goal, according to a source, with more than 20 GOP lawmakers transferring $50,000 from their campaigns to the committee.
The transferred funds are likely to go toward the party’s most vulnerable members, known as the “NRCC Patriots.” Johnson has made it a priority as speaker to fundraise for GOP candidates, traveling to more than 20 states such as Florida, Arkansas, Arizona, and California to stump on lawmakers’ behalf.
Johnson has also utilized his Grow the Majority fundraising PAC to help support more than 70 incumbents, challengers, and state parties.
The record-high transfer is a sign of fundraising strength for the new speaker, possibly squelching initial fears among Republicans that the party would endure a financial drought after ousting former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a prolific fundraiser for the House GOP. But since then, Johnson has repeatedly managed to secure massive hauls despite lacking the years of experience his predecessor benefited from.
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Johnson raised more than $20 million during the first four months of 2024, his first full quarter holding the speakership. However, it still falls below what McCarthy raised during the first quarter of 2022 when he announced a haul of $31.5 million for Republicans, later outraising that with $35 million in the first quarter of 2023.
Despite the record-high transfers to the NRCC, the committee has consistently been outraised by its Democratic counterpart. The NRCC raised $108.5 million from the beginning of 2023 through March 2024. For comparison, its Democratic counterpart raised $145.3 million over the same time period.