DNC tallied over $7 million in grassroots fundraising last month

The Democratic National Committee raised over $7.4 million through small dollar-focused fundraising last month, an official told CBS News, giving the party one of its strongest grassroots starts to the year on record ahead of this fall's midterms as it tries to claw back lost political ground.

The party reached that mark partially due to appeals from Democratic Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, and interest tied to a new voter registration push, according to the official. The fundraising follows last November's off-year elections, where voters gave Democrats major wins in the Virginia and New Jersey governor races even as the DNC faced a challenging financial picture.

"Our momentum is building across the country, from Democrats sweeping local elections and flipping long-held Republican seats, to record-setting small dollar fundraising and volunteer sign-ups," DNC Executive Director Roger Lau said in a statement. "We are harnessing this energy to support Democratic candidates across the map, win big in November's elections, and put a check on Trump's reckless administration."

Election dynamics and recent election wins already have some Democrats eying the potential of a blue wave in this fall's midterms as the party tries to push past the last presidential election cycle, when it lost control of the presidency and the Senate while falling short of retaking the House.

Momentum in that direction, however, has come at the same time that the party faces a fraught financial gap compared to its GOP counterpart that could end up carrying major implications down the ballot.

The Republican National Committee brought in more than $172 million last year, and headed into 2026 with $95 million in the bank. Over that same span, the DNC raised close to $146 million and closed 2025 with $14 million left over and $17.5 million in debts.

Both parties have until Feb. 20 to report their January 2026 finances to the Federal Election Commission. The $7.4 million in grassroots dollars is expected to be part, but not all, of the DNC's total fundraising haul for the month. The DNC's grassroots fundraising figures include donations that were raised through channels like email, texts and online ads.

Republicans are already using their 2025 financial advantage as a potential proof point that President Trump and his GOP could defy normal political gravity come November, when every House seat is on the ballot and control of the Republican-held Senate is also on the line.

"President Trump's record is driving historic grassroots support and giving Republican candidates the opportunity to defy history in the midterms," RNC spokeswoman Kiersten Pels said in a text message.

"Democrats and their left-wing allies are preparing to flood the midterms with outside money, which is exactly why the RNC has built this war chest — to go toe-to-toe with that spending, conduct targeted voter outreach, and support President Trump and our candidates nationwide."

The DNC's debt is tied in with a large line of credit opened before the November 2025 contests meant in part to help bolster party infrastructure. In an interview with CBS News last year, Martin characterized the line of credit as a "big bet" that allowed the party to invest heavily in those off-year races, and argued the party "won big."

Republicans hold a narrow majority in the House, and Democrats have a strong path to potentially winning back the chamber for the final two years of Mr. Trump's time in the White House. Flipping the Senate from GOP control is a far more stark challenge.

For Democrats to win back the Senate this fall, they would likely have to hold on to every seat they currently have that is also on the ballot and also flip four seats from a competitive batch of contests in North Carolina, Maine, Ohio, Alaska, Texas and Iowa.

All of that sets the table for what is expected to be an expensive and tense midterm election, making the larger money game in American politics even more critical. And in recent weeks, the DNC has at times turned to Kelly, the battleground senator from Arizona, to help bring in cash.

This winter, Kelly has been mired in a tense confrontation with Mr. Trump's Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that has been evoked in DNC small-dollar asks.

Hegseth directed an investigation into Kelly after he participated in a video with other lawmakers reminding service members they don't have to follow illegal orders. In a January social media post, Hegseth claimed that Kelly and his fellow Democrats had "released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline," and said the Pentagon was initiating proceedings to reduce Kelly's rank and retirement pay over "seditious statements — and his pattern of reckless misconduct."

Shortly after, Kelly sued the Pentagon for allegedly retaliating against him in violation of the First Amendment for comments he made years after he served in the military. Kelly and the Justice Department argued their cases in court last week and a judge said he would rule within the next few weeks.

And on Tuesday, a federal grand jury turned down an effort by the Justice Department to criminally charge Kelly and five other lawmakers over the video, CBS News reported.

An elected official lending their name to help the national party is incredibly common. But the situation Kelly finds himself in is one that carries major implications in Washington — and has pushed him further into the national spotlight while providing fodder for donor emails that helped the DNC raise money last month.

"Pete Hegseth can threaten to reduce my rank and my pension. But I am not going to let him intimidate me, or anyone else," Kelly said in one January DNC fundraising email. "He is not going to stop me from defending our democracy from a president who is hellbent on destroying it."

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