Former President Barack Obama will headline a fundraiser next month to benefit Democratic Senate candidates, according to details shared first with NBC News.
The June 5 event in Potomac, Maryland, will feature Obama and Sen. Chris Van Hollen, the state’s junior senator, discussing “the importance of protecting Democrats’ Senate majority and the stakes of the election,” a Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee aide said.
Longtime Democratic donors Jeffrey and Lora Drezner are hosting the evening fundraiser, according to a copy of the invitation.
“Given the stakes of this election, President Obama will do all he can to support President Biden’s re-election,” Obama senior adviser Eric Schultz said in a statement the former president’s office released earlier this year to preview his planned involvement in the 2024 campaigns. “In fact, he looks forward to helping Democrats up and down the ballot make the case to voters this fall. Our strategy will be based on driving impact, especially where and when his voice can help move the needle.”
This year’s Senate races could tip partisan control of the chamber, where Democrats hold a one-seat majority thanks to three independent members aligned with the party.
Democratic Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Jon Tester of Montana are up for re-election in two states that former President Donald Trump won by large margins. Arizona, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania are among the other states hosting key races.
In Van Hollen’s state, the retirement of Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin has set up a competitive battle between Democratic Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks and Republican Larry Hogan, a popular former two-term governor.
Nearly eight years after leaving the White House, Obama remains one of the Democratic Party’s top fundraising draws. He and former President Bill Clinton joined President Joe Biden in March for an event that the Biden re-election campaign said brought in more than $26 million.
Obama’s office has indicated that he plans to also lend his name this year to fundraising emails and to record ads and robocalls for candidates in down-ballot races.
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