DNC raised $8 million during September, beat RNC in third quarter

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) raised $8 million in September and outpaced the Republican National Committee (RNC) for the first quarter in five years.

The RNC slightly outraised the DNC in September, with $8.7 million. But thanks to a $3 million edge in July, the DNC outraised the RNC by about $1.3 million for the three-month period between July and September.

The last time the DNC did that was the second quarter of 2004, when a presidential campaign was being waged. In non-election years (and non-presidential years), the DNC has routinely been beaten.

Congressional Democrats did even better in September, with the DCCC outraising the NRCC, $7 million to $3.4 million.

The DSCC outraised the NRSC, too, $5.9 million to $3.2 million.

Despite some evening of the playing field in the 2010 cycle – particularly among the Senate committees – the Democrats’ House and Senate committees have still outraised Republicans in every quarter so far this year.

The Democratic committees' fundraising strategies tend toward the last month of the quarter, in which they generally turn in much higher numbers than the other months.