Don’t look now, Nancy, but the Republicans are gaining on you.  Despite numerous problems this year and a supposedly poisonous political atmosphere for the GOP, the National Republican Congressional Committee outraised its Democratic counterpart (DCCC) by $3 million.  However, the cash on hand still widely favors the Democrats:

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) made some fundraising headway in July, outraising its Democratic counterpart by more than $3 million and narrowing its cash-on-hand gap by about $4 million.

The NRCC used a surge in member giving to raise $9.2 million, according to its latest Federal Election Commission report. It spent $3.5 million and increased its available funds to $14.1 million.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), which has consistently pulled in more than the NRCC, raised about $6 million and spent $4.2 million. The Democrats maintain a strong cash advantage, though, with $56.5 million left over.

These numbers should get even better in August.  The House Republican Caucus has made energy its main cause, and an overwhelming majority of Americans support their “kitchen sink” policy of drilling and conservation.  Pelosi’s early adjournment of Congress without allowing a vote on that policy came after the end of this reporting cycle, and House Democrats have already started abandoning Pelosi on energy based on the feedback they’ve received on their vacation.

The Democrats outraised the GOP on the Senate committees, though the NRSC also managed to narrow the cash-on-hand gap.  The DSCC spent heavily in July, and even though they took $1.6 million more in contributions than the NRSC, they spent almost $9 million, most of that in Oregon and Mississippi.  The NRSC still has an $18 million gap to close between now and the election — and they could have ridden the same energy wave coming to the NRCC, had it not been for the weak Gang of 10 compromise.

Republicans could still get competitive in this cycle.  Stay tuned.