Things have been looking up for Democratic candidates throughout the country in recent months, aided in no small part by the fail-to-deliver-promises record of the Trump administration. The news has been spread out in many states in the general election and some special elections on the congressional and state legislative levels, including Jeremy Zellner’s recent win in state Senate District 63.
The national party and some state party organizations have done a lot of organizing and fundraising to assist those candidates. For the party to get stronger, though, the efforts must expand to the local level. That is where victories can build a bench of good officeholders who will in years to come will be able to move up to state and federal offices. The Republican Party over the years has made building the party on the local and county levels a priority.
As a member of the National Democratic Committee (NDC) and the National Democratic County Officials (NDCO) Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz has participated in the work on a national level. He is now organizing an effort to bring financial resources and assistance to local candidates throughout the country.
Poloncarz is the founder of Boosting Future Leaders Onward (BFLO), a federal committee dedicated to electing Democrats at the county and local level across the United States. He notes that “when Democrats win locally, it builds trust, strengthens confidence in Democratic ideas, and lays the foundation for victories at every level—community, county, state, and national.”
Poloncarz’s recently visited Wilson County, Tennessee. “Four years ago, no one ran for county office, and 50 people attended their fundraising dinner. This year, 23 candidates are running for county office and more than 600 attended the dinner. Residents who once stayed on the sidelines now filled the room, energized and determined to elect Democrats in a ‘red’ county.”
Poloncarz’s efforts include fundraising to provide additional resources for local candidates. While congressional and often state legislative races cost hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars to run, on a local level much smaller amounts of money can make a critical difference in a campaign. That assistance can help Democrats build the bench for the party.
Congressional fundraising
And here is the other end of candidate financial resources. Fundraising by members of Congress is out of sight.
Financial reporting for congressional candidates for the last quarter of 2025 and the aggregate fundraising and spending was recently completed. Here’s a look at the treasuries of Western New York members of the House of Representatives and New York Senators for the year 2025.
Nick Langworthy, Republican, 23rd District – Raised $1,457,252; Spent $613,449; Cash-on-hand $ $1,937,611. Langworthy also has a Congressional Victory Committee that holds $315,164.
Claudia Tenney, Republican, 24th District – Raised $1,930,850; Spent $1,120,491; Cash-on-hand $355,002. Tenney has a leadership PAC with $234,531 cash-on-hand
Tim Kennedy, Democrat, 26th District – Raised $1,490,639; Spent $ 809,179; Cash-on-hand $1,020,525
Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat – Raised $598,325; Spent $1,525,310; Cash-on-hand $8,396,647. Schumer’s leadership PAC has $755,108 cash-on-hand.
Senator Kirstin Gillibrand, Democrat – Raised $1,915,482; Spent $761,387; Cash-on-hand $1,869,822
Schumer will next be up for election in 2028. Gillibrand’s term extends through 2030.
In addition to Kennedy’s federal campaign account, he is also in control of $1,268,060 left in a state election account created when he was a state senator.
The money raised comes in large part from Political Action Committees that are often associated with businesses, unions, and community organizations that have an interest in subject matters controlled by congressional committees that the representative is a member of. Small donations are very rare; no evidence of any $25 beer blast.
Money spent through those election accounts includes the usual things like fundraising expenses, travel, consultants, and contributions to other political organizations including local candidates and parties. Donations to other members of Congress and candidates including national party committees are dedicated to retaining or winning control of the House.
Fundraising for members of Congress, as the numbers above indicate, demands a great deal of time. While of course the activity does not fall into a neat daily or weekly activity, looking at the annual results shows how much effort is required. Tenney’s work to raise $1.9 million means producing an average of $37,132 each and every week.
The congressional money raising in amount, time and effort is not a good sign for the country. It facilitates special interests jumping the line to influence federal law making. Of course they don’t do that very much anymore.
Bluesky @kenkruly
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