Maine Democrat Sara Gideon still has nearly $11.6 million in the bank after spending $62.9 million in her unsuccessful Senate bid. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
As congressional candidates raked in record sums of campaign cash in the extraordinarily expensive 2020 election, they experienced a unique problem: too much money and not enough time to spend it.
Several candidates who lost their races are sitting on millions in unspent campaign cash. The losers in the 10 most expensive 2020 Senate races still had a combined $35.3 million in the bank according to the most recent Federal Election Commission filings.
Maine Democrat Sara Gideon still has nearly $11.6 million in the bank after spending $62.9 million in her unsuccessful Senate bid. Former Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.), who injected $23.8 million of her own money into her unsuccessful campaign, had roughly $11.5 million in the bank as of late January.
Democrats Choose Gary Peters to Lead Senate Campaign Team
28 Jan 2021
Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) will chair the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) as Democrats seek to hold their one-seat majority in 2022.
Peters, who defeated Republican John James in November, was chosen to lead the Democrat Senate campaign team.
Democrats just gained the Senate majority for the first time since 2014 and have to maintain their one-seat majority after both Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock won their respective Senate runoffs in January.
Democrats will have to contend with a competitive cycle in 2022; they will have to defend newly elected senators in Georgia and Arizona and flip seats in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina.
Michigan Sen Peters to lead Dem efforts to expand majority sfgate.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from sfgate.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Balance of power: With several races still undecided, Senate control remains at a deadlock
By Catherine Park
Control of the Senate was still up in the air Thursday as Republicans beat Democratic challengers in crucial states but failed to lock down the seats needed to retain their tenuous Senate majority.
One race in Georgia is headed to a January runoff. A second contest in Georgia and races in North Carolina and Alaska remain undecided, leaving the chamber now deadlocked 48-48. An outcome may not be known until the new year.
With the presidential race between President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden also undecided, the Senate is in limbo because the vice president of the eventual winner s party would serve as a tie-breaker in a split chamber.