As Democrats aim to take the U.S. House in 2026, Republican incumbents raise significant funds in Q1

The first campaign finance reports of the year are in and Republican incumbents appear to be gearing up for expensive races, as their majority in the U.S. House may hinge upon protecting multiple seats in the Keystone State.

U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-1st District) raised more than any U.S. House candidate in Pennsylvania in the first three months of 2025. From the beginning of January to the end of March, Fitzpatrick raised $1.22 million and spent just under $275,000.

Fitzpatrick, a Republican from Bucks County serving his fifth term in Congress, also holds the most cash on hand of any incumbent candidate in the commonwealth. Campaign finance records show he entered April with $5.37 million, a significant amount more than other GOP lawmaker who will likely face high-priced reelection bids.

At this point in the previous cycle, Fitzpatrick’s campaign had just $1.91 million cash on hand.

Four of the top five fundraisers in the commonwealth’s congressional delegation in Q1 are being targeted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) as seats to flip in 2026. Pennsylvania is the only state that the DCCC is targeting more than 3 GOP held seats in its initial list of targets for the next election.

Republicans, who hold a narrow majority in the U.S. House, flipped two seats in Pennsylvania during the 2024 election.

Berwood Yost, the director of the Franklin & Marshall College Poll, told the Capital-Star it’s no surprise Republican incumbents are among the leaders in fundraising for Q1, since they are the most competitive seats in the state.

“They will attract the most interest, particularly to hold the Republican majority,” Yost said. “I mean, if you lose those four seats, you’ve got issues nationally.”

While Democrats are placing a high priority to be on offense in Pennsylvania, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), did not include any Democratic held seats in its initial 2026 target list.

U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R-8th District), who defeated incumbent Democrat Matt Cartwright for the seat in 2024 by roughly 1.5 points, raised the second highest in the state’s congressional delegation for Q1. The GOP freshman raised just under $835,000 from the beginning of January to the end of March, while spending $170,000. Bresnahan’s campaign entered April with $715,000 cash on hand.

Another Republican freshman member of the state’s congressional delegation finished Q1 with the third highest haul. U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-7th District), who unseated incumbent Democrat Susan Wild in 2024 by 1 point, raised just under $675,000 from the beginning of January to the end of March and spent roughly $165,000. His campaign entered April with $615,000 on hand.

U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R-10th District), who is coming off of his closest race for reelection since winning a seat in the U.S. House in 2012, raised $565,000 from the beginning of January to the end of March and spent just under $95,000. Perry’s haul was the fifth highest in the state’s congressional delegation.

Perry’s campaign entered April with slightly less than $555,000, which is more than he had at this point in the previous cycle when his campaign had just over $360,000.

Yost said he imagines that there’s going to be “ample donors” for challengers in those competitive seats, since it is being targeted by the DCCC.

“It’s a little too soon to make any judgments about Democrats’ interest or enthusiasm, simply because you don’t really have candidates doing that fundraising yet,” Yost said.

“The normal ebb and flow is the incumbents are going to do what they can to solidify their donor base if they are expecting a challenge,” Yost said. “And we’ll know more about how competitive those races will be once we have declared candidates with the infrastructure that they need to report the fundraising.”

The only Republican in the state’s congressional delegation to not raise more than every Democrat is U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-16th District), who raised just over $125,000 from the beginning of January to the end of March.

Although the 2026 midterm elections are 21 months away, national ratings outlets indicate that the races Democrats are targeting in the state should be competitive. The Cook Political Report rates Mackenzie and Perry’s bid for reelections in the 7th and 10th Congressional Districts, respectively, as “toss-ups.”

They also rate Bresnahan’s bid for a second term in the 8th Congressional District as “lean Republican,” and Fitzpatrick’s quest for another term representing parts of suburban Philadelphia as “likely Republican.”

The only Democrat on the radar of that national ratings outlet is U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-17th District) – a race they describe as “likely Democratic.” Deluzio raised just under $250,000 in Q1, which is more than any other Democratic incumbent in the state’s congressional delegation.

Democrats begin lining up for competitive House races

While the primary election for the House is still one year away, a few candidates have already entered the 2026 race.

Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie, a Democrat, announced earlier this month that he’s seeking his party’s nomination to face Fitzpatrick. Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure, a Democrat, declared his entrance into the race against Mackenzie for the 7th Congressional District in February.

As of April 18, no Democratic candidates have filed to run for the 8th and 10th Congressional Districts to challenge Bresnahan and Perry, although rematches for both races could happen. Cartwright told the Scranton Times-Tribune in January that he might run for the 8th Congressional District again in 2026, while Janelle Stelson, the Democrat who lost to Perry by 1.2 points last year, said last month that she is “seriously considering” a second run for the 10th Congressional District.

Yost said it’s too soon to tell how these races are going to shape up, but said he thinks “we can probably suggest” that the Democratic candidates “will be pretty well funded in all of these races,” as well as the Republican candidates, unless a weak candidate makes it through the primary election.

Due to the potential implications of the majority of the U.S. House being on the line, Yost thinks Democratic donors from across the country could weigh in on these battleground races. 

Evans’ future?

U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans (D-3rd District) is the only member of the state’s congressional delegation to raise less than $100,000. The Philadelphia Democrat raised just under $40,000 from the beginning of January to the end of March. His campaign spent about $50,000 in Q1, which is more than it brought in during that time period.

Evans is also the only member to have less than $100,000 in his account. Entering April, his campaign had just under $65,000 on hand. The next lowest is U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser (R-9th District), a potential candidate for governor, who has $206,000 on hand.

Evans suffered a stroke in May 2024 and was reelected to another term in November. Following his illness, he did not vote for several months as he recovered. Multiple Democrats, according to a Philadelphia Inquirer report in December, would be interested in running for the seat, should Evans not seek reelection in 2026.

The names the Inquirer mentioned as potential candidates included state Sen. Sharif Street, Pennsylvania’s Democratic Party chair, state Rep. Morgan Cephas, the Philadelphia Delegation chair in the Pennsylvania House, and state Rep. Chris Rabb (D-Philadelphia). Dave Oxman, a physician, has already filed to run for Pennsylvania’s 3rd Congressional District.

Rabb set up an exploratory committee in October 2023, but decided against joining the race.

The link to donate to Rabb’s exploratory committee is still active on ActBlue, although he told the Capital-Star that he set it up for the 2024 election cycle “based on persistent rumors that Rep. Evans might not run for reelection. When his name appeared on the ballot, I had no desire to run against him.”

When asked by the Capital-Star if he was actively considering a run for the seat in 2026, he said it was “too soon to say.”

A spokesperson for the Evans campaign told the Capital-Star on Friday that he “has every intention to run for re-election at this time” and “is working hard at fundraising and plans for a successful Q2.”

Evans, after a long tenure in the Pennsylvania General Assembly, defeated indicted incumbent Congressman Chaka Fattah in the Democratic Party primary in 2016 to win a seat in the U.S. House. He’s coasted to reelection since winning a seat in Congress and according to national ratings outlets, represents a safe Democratic district.

Yost said since it’s not a competitive district, “the impetus for him to raise money is not the same as it is for, say, Fitzpatrick or these other candidates that are in competitive districts.”

“That’s just the reality,” Yost said.

Fetterman posts lowest quarter since entering Senate

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), raised an impressive $73.9 million during his successful 2022 campaign over Republican Mehmet Oz.

Although he’s not up for reelection until 2028, his campaign raised the lowest amount in a full quarter since he declared for the seat in February 2021.

Fetterman’s campaign raised just over $395,000 from the beginning of January to the end of March and spent a little more than $415,000. 

In 2024, Fetterman raised $1 million in two-consecutive quarters to end the year. His lowest haul last year was $881,000 in the first three months of 2024.

Prior to this past quarter, Fetterman’s lowest total for a three-month stretch was $720,000 from the beginning of April to the end of June in 2023.

Over the past few months, Fetterman has faced pushback from Democrats and other progressives over a number of his statements, votes, and positions, including backing multiple cabinet selections in President Donald Trump’s administration. But, he holds a positive approval rating, according to data from early this year.

Yost said there’s no doubt that there are a number of Democrats who supported Fetterman in 2022 that have “soured” on him due, in part, to some of those recent votes.

Since Fetterman isn’t up for reelection until 2028, Yost believes “he’s got plenty of time to raise money, but you can’t ignore” the pushback he’s receiving from some in his own party.

“Maybe this is an early sign that he could have trouble raising money from traditional Democratic sources,” Yost said. “It’s worth following that to see if it’s just a blip, or if this is an early indicator that he may have trouble raising money like he did in 2022.”

Fetterman entered April with $2.29 million on hand.