Dem
49
Ties
1
GOP
50
The most expensive Senate race in U.S. history was the 2020 North Carolina race, which witnessed the expenditure of $298,910,541. And, of course, if someone had just spent another buck on a zipper that locked properly, it might have had a different outcome.
That record has now fallen, courtesy of this year's race in Pennsylvania, where the John Fetterman-Mehmet Oz (R) tilt is the new king of the spent-money hill. Here are the 10 most expensive Senate races this cycle:
| State | Candidate Spending | Outside Spending | Total Spending |
| Pennsylvania | $89,993,585 | $222,137,618 | $312,131,203 |
| Georgia | $108,023,518 | $146,645,096 | $254,668,614 |
| Arizona | $83,013,976 | $119,318,562 | $202,332,538 |
| Nevada | $59,003,215 | $127,747,515 | $186,750,730 |
| Wisconsin | $60,128,308 | $125,682,758 | $185,811,066 |
| North Carolina | $43,384,984 | $94,130,007 | $137,514,991 |
| Ohio | $53,600,845 | $76,770,535 | $130,371,380 |
| Florida | $110,917,510 | $10,400,975 | $121,318,485 |
| New Hampshire | $38,118,711 | $47,018,928 | $85,137,639 |
| Washington | $35,359,041 | $19,961,430 | $55,320,471 |
To conceptualize how crazy these kinds of outlays are, consider the last six Pennsylvania U.S. Senate races:
| Year | Dem % | Rep % | Total Votes |
| 2018 | 56% | 43% | 4,927,285 |
| 2016 | 48% | 49% | 5,816,714 |
| 2012 | 54% | 45% | 5,530,496 |
| 2010 | 49% | 51% | 3,977,661 |
| 2006 | 59% | 41% | 4,077,762 |
| 2004 | 42% | 53% | 5,259,206 |
The absolute floor for either party appears to be about 40%. Oz, for example, could turn out to be an elitist snob who is a snake oil salesman, has little use for Pennsylvania, and kills puppies, and he's still going to get at least 40% of the vote. Same for Fetterman. So, at most, 20% of the votes are actually gettable. And roughly 5,000,000 people will vote in this election; 20% of that is 1,000,000. In other words, we've seen an outlay of roughly $300 for each gettable vote. And if you assume that, in the current hyperpartisan moment, the real floor for each party is more like 45%, then it jumps to $600 per gettable vote.
The spending isn't going away, of course, especially in a world that features Citizens United, as well as a Senate where one seat could mean the whole ball of wax. With 2024 being a presidential year, we could very well see a $350 million Senate race, perhaps in Ohio, where Sherrod Brown (D) will be playing defense. (Z)