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A group working to elect more Republican women to Congress is touting its efforts, and successes, in congressional races across the country as the road to this year’s midterm elections makes its way through a busy primary season.
The Winning For Women Action Fund (WFW AF), the political arm of the conservative women’s advocacy group Winning For Women, has already been involved in a number of races this election cycle and has seen record fundraising as it looks to help women candidates make an even greater impact on the makeup of Congress.
Launched in 2019, the WFW AF was the first SuperPAC dedicated to electing Republican women. It endorsed over 20 candidates and spent nearly $3 million in its first campaign cycle during the 2020 elections, including for Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst’s tough re-election bid, and has cited that successful support as a sign the group will play a crucial role in the 2022 elections.
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“Last cycle, 11 of the 15 seats flipped in the House were by women. Proof that when we invest in qualified female candidates, they win. This cycle, the road to the majority is through the districts where a strong female candidate is running, and we want to ensure they have what they need to win,” the group said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
Winning For Women has endorsed candidates like, from left, Texas’ Monica De La Cruz, Alabama’s Katie Britt and Virginia’s Jen Kiggans. (Cruz campaign | Britt campaign | Kiggans campaign)
WFW AF has already seen success this election cycle with primary wins by Rep. Nancy Mace in South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District and Monica De La Cruz in Texas’ 15th District, as well as Alabama Senate candidate Katie Britt advancing to a runoff Tuesday.
WFW AF, along with related groups, also raised $4.6 million in the first quarter of 2022, double what it raised at the same point in 2020, and has poured money into its selected races – including spending nearly $550,000 on TV, radio and mail ads for Mace in the last two weeks leading up to the primary election against challenger Katie Arrington.
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De La Cruz, who is running in a district Republicans are targeting to flip from Democratic control, praised WFW AF in a statement to Fox News Digital, stressing the importance of the group’s efforts in her race amid a massive shift in support from Hispanic voters toward the Republican Party.
“The shift in Hispanic voters to the Republican Party is one of the most important stories in American politics today, and Hispanic women are leading the charge,” De La Cruz said. “As a small business owner, and a mom raising a family and serving the community, I know the American Dream is attainable for women in South Texas and across our nation.”
“I also know firsthand that conservative policies provide real solutions and results that make it possible,” she added. “That’s why Winning for Women makes a difference, because the organization encourages and supports conservative women like myself who are running for office and want more for our families, our communities, and the American people.”
Rep. Nancy Mace speaks at a fundraiser that was headlined by former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in Charleston on March 11, 2022. (Nancy Mace congressional campaign)
WFW AF’s latest endorsement and financial boost have gone to Virginia state Sen. Jennifer Kiggans, who is running in Tuesday’s Republican primary for the state’s 2nd Congressional District – considered a tossup – and is hoping to face embattled Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria in the general election.
The group launched a more than $200,000 ad campaign in support of Kiggans after a Democratic group, Patriot Majority PAC, began running ads advocating for her Republican opponent, Jarome Bell, who appeared on stage with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago last month.
A spokesperson for WFW AF suggested the ads in support of Bell meant Democrats saw Kiggans as the true “threat” to Luria’s seat.
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Other prominent Republican women have praised the work of WFW AF, including former U.N. Ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who detailed her efforts in working alongside the group to get strong female candidates elected.
“Conservative women are built tough and are tired of being silenced by the Left and the media. That’s why I’m traveling the country campaigning for conservatives which include some of the strongest ladies I know. Now is not the time to sit back, but to press forward. I can’t wait to see the next class of freedom fighting women get elected,” she said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley gives a speech. (Nikki Halley Stand for America PAC)
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WFW AF has so far endorsed 24 candidates for this year’s midterms, but said there are “definitely more to come.”
Fox News’ Tyler Olson contributed to this report.
Brandon Gillespie is an associate editor at Fox News. Follow him on Twitter at @brandon_cg.
