Democratic House candidates generally outraised Republicans last quarter but GOP candidates overall tended to have more cash on hand ahead of November's midterms, Karl Rove wrote in a column for The Wall Street Journal.
Though having more money doesn't guarantee victory this Nov. 6, "money still signals strength," Rove writes.
So who's winning the battle at this point? It depends, Rove writes.
Looking at tossup districts, Democrats outraised Republicans in 14 of those 26 districts. However, further inspection of those same districts shows that Republican candidates overall have roughly $15 million more in their war chests than do Democrats, Rove writes.
"The GOP should pay attention to the Democratic congressional candidates who have had success getting large numbers of small donations," Rove writes.
"Republicans gained a tactical edge in the 1970s and ’80s by perfecting direct-mail fundraising. Today Democrats could get an advantage by dominating online small-dollar fundraising for candidates," Rove writes.
Regardless, election night is ultimately going to come down to the better candidate, but the message is in the money, Rove writes.
"… The outcome this fall will depend heavily on the quality of individual campaigns. What matters is the candidates’ authenticity, their messages and whether they have sufficient mother’s milk to get their stories across," Rove writes.
"Republican House candidates who haven’t been raising money better step up to keep or get a cash-on-hand advantage. They have only 110 days until ballots are counted," Rove writes.
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