Record-breaking fundraising in Virginia's legislative races

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The battle for control of Virginia's legislature is leading to record-breaking political fundraising as special interest groups spend big in the final weeks of the contest.

Virginia is the only state where Democrats have a chance to flip control of the state legislature this year.

New campaign finance reports show General Assembly candidates have raised about $53 million so far, up about 67% from the last time all 140 seats were up for grabs in 2015.

That's according to the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project. Many Democrats in tight races saw huge fundraising totals in the most recent reports, which covered the month of September.

Donors backing gun-control, abortion rights and environmental causes are among the biggest donors to Democrats. Republicans are taking large amounts of corporate money.

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This story has been updated to correct the fundraising totals.