Democratic candidate Tom Suozzi has vastly outraised his Republican challenger in the special election to replace former Republican Rep. George Santos in New York’s 3rd Congressional District, giving Democrats a boost as they seek to cut away at the GOP’s already slim House majority. 

Suozzi has raised $4.5 million since being tapped as the Democrats’ nominee, compared to $1.3 million for Republican candidate Mazi Pilip, according to campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. That leaves Suozzi with $2.2 million cash on hand, a much heftier war chest than Pilip’s $628,000. 

The fundraising reports come as House Republicans and Democrats have poured millions of dollars in advertising into the special election that could influence the balance of power in the lower chamber. Shortly after Santos was ousted last year, Democratic-aligned groups vowed to play a heavy hand in the race to replace him. 

But Republicans are not giving up so easily, hoping to hold on to one of the seats they flipped in 2022 that was key to seizing control of the House. Just this week, the GOP-aligned Congressional Leadership Fund announced a $2.6 million ad campaign in the 3rd District, bringing the group’s total investment to $5 million. 

The National Republican Congressional Committee has also launched campaigns attacking Suozzi over immigration, purchasing ads that show the former congressman voting against legislation that would alert authorities if an undocumented immigrant attempts to purchase a firearm. 

Meanwhile, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic-aligned House Majority PAC have similarly poured millions of dollars into ad campaigns against Pilip, particularly attacking her anti-abortion rights campaign platform.

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The special election is scheduled for Feb. 13 and will feature a showdown between Suozzi, who held the seat before launching an unsuccessful bid for governor in 2022, and Pilip, who is seen as a rising star in the party after she was elected to the Nassau County Legislature in 2021 on a platform largely focused on battling antisemitism and supporting Israel.

Whoever wins will carry out the rest of Santos’s term and be put in a better position to be reelected later in the year. The race is expected to be competitive, with the nonpartisan CookPoliticalReport rating it as a toss-up.