Ivanka Trump to help raise money for Senate Republicans

Ivanka Trump plans to raise money for Senate Republicans’ campaign arm this fall — amid new concern about the party’s fragile 51-seat majority in that chamber.

An invitation shared with the Star-Telegram Tuesday lists the president’s daughter as a “special guest” at a Dallas fundraiser that’s now being rescheduled, according to the White House.

Tickets to the Dallas breakfast ranged from $50,000 per couple, to $10,000 per person — complete with a “VIP photo.”

Ivanka Trump is expected to headline a limited number of campaign events for Republicans this fall, but could offer valuable fundraising help to GOP Senate candidates who struggled to keep pace with their Democratic opponents in the last reporting period.

Events she attended with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy in California this summer raised more than $3 million for a committee aimed at protecting vulnerable House Republicans.

Republicans can only have a net loss of one seat to maintain their Senate majority next year, with Vice President Mike Pence serving as a tie-breaker.

Democrats are defending 24 Senate seats, including 10 incumbents in states President Donald Trump won.

Republicans need to defend nine, including two seats without incumbents seeking re-election, Arizona and Tennessee, as well as one state, Nevada, where Democrat Hillary Clinton won.

Outside groups have now begun spending to shore up Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, whose seat they viewed safe at the beginning of the year.

GOP strategists say Trump and his family have been prolific fundraisers for the party, but sucked some of the oxygen away from rank and file Republicans.

The invitation to the Dallas fundraiser noted that Ivanka Trump’s participation was “not a solicitation of funds.”

She’s visiting Dallas and Houston this week to highlight White House workforce development initiatives.

The Dallas metro area was the third largest contributor to Trump’s 2016 campaign, according to Open Secrets, and two Dallas zipcodes — 75205 and 75225 — were among the top ten in the country for Trump’s donors.

The area is also home to one of the most competitive Congressional races this fall, where GOP Rep. Pete Sessions faces a challenge from Democrat Colin Allred. Clinton carried that district by three percentage points in 2016.

This story was originally published September 19, 2018 at 12:27 PM with the headline "Ivanka Trump to help raise money for Senate Republicans."