Georgia's 6th District Election On Pace To Be Most Expensive House Race Ever

MARIETTA, GA — The closely watched congressional race for Georgia's 6th District seat is fast becoming a money train, with funds coming in from an assortment of groups aligned Democrats or Republicans, which could make it the most expensive House of Representatives race in the nation's history. Even before the special election, first-time Democrat Jon Ossoff pulled in an astonishing $8.3 million — or 17 times what a candidate in a competitive district normally raises, according to the Washington Post.

With Democrats falling just short of the 50 percent plus one majority needed to snatch the seat away from the GOP, there's no reason to think the 30-year-old's campaign coffers will shrivel. (To get notified of the results of this election instantly, click here to sign up for the Marietta Cobb Patch. Or find your Atlanta-area town here. If you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

As for Karen Handel, now that she can rely on the full weight of a unified Republican Party, the former secretary of State is set to benefit from a treasure chest of campaign funding.

On Wednesday, the Paul Ryan-connected PAC Congressional Leadership Fund vowed to spend $2.5 million in TV advertising beginning May 10 for Handel to stave off the Democrats. She can also depend on the National Republican Congressional Committee, which debuted an anti-Ossoff ad the day after the April 18 special election.

But nothing will move the needle for her — one way or the other — more than the leader of the free world, President Donald Trump, raising funds for Handel at an event Friday in Atlanta. The president will be in town to speak at the NRA's national convention downtown.

Read more: President Trump Visits Atlanta Friday For NRA Convention

But how much money can we expect to be spent in the 6th election, which has already tallied more than $14 million and will culminate in a June 20 runoff?

The most expensive House election happened five years ago in 2012 when Democrat Patrick Murphy went up against incumbent Republican Allen West in Florida's 18th congressional district. Murphy edged out West in a slugfest that topped $29.2 million, according to New York Magazine.

In February, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal called a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Tom Price, who vacated the seat to serve in the Trump administration as the nation's Health secretary. Eighteen candidates qualified to represent the 6th District — a swath of affluent Atlanta suburbs encompassing parts of Cobb, Fulton and DeKalb counties.

Ossoff was able to best 17 other candidates in what many described as a litmus test of Trump's popularity. The 30-year-old investigative filmmaker was able to capitalize on anti-Trump sentiment in a district that has voted Republican since 1979. But the GOP is intent on keeping the area solidly Republican.

Image via Patch file photo