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WASHINGTON There areearly signs of Democratic enthusiasmin Texasin the latest round of federal campaign finance report filings over the weekend, but whether that fundraising support will translate into trouble for Republicans remains to be seen.

Four GOP incumbents from Texas U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, and U.S. Reps. John Culberson of Houston, Ted Poe of Humble and Lamar Smith of San Antonio found in recent days that theirDemocratic challengers hadposted better fundraising hauls than they hadin the second quarter of this year.

"It's happening in other places as well," said Achim Bergmann, a Democratic consultant who has clients across the country including one challenging Culberson. "It's particularly surprising and encouraging in a place like Texas, and it might be an indication of where Republicans are taking things for granted and are going to be sorry."

This sort of scenario is the first sign of incumbent danger in political circles, but most of these incumbents already have hefty war chests from previous campaigns.

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"Comparing a quarter's worth of fundraising is like declaring victory after one inning of a baseball game," cautioned Nathan Gonzales, a political analyst at Inside Campaigns, a political newsletter.

The most recent fundraising stretch early April through the end of June marked a time when dozens of Democratic challengers declared their campaigns for office around the state. The Democrats highlighted below either out-paced or nearly out-paced their Republican rivals in the second quarter.

U.S. Senate

U.S. House races:

Whileads fromsuper PACshave oftendominatedthe television airwavesahead of elections in recent years, candidate fundraising still matters because it illustrates enthusiasm and candidatesare able tobook TV ads at a lower price than outside groups.

Bragging rights are due for any challenger who raises more than an incumbent many donors refuse to give to challengers.But the first quarter is often among a candidate's strongest; it's the low-hanging fruit and easiest ask.

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Additionally, some of this money will be spent by Democrats to survive their own primaries.The Houston-based Democratic primary for Culberson's seathas the potential to turn into a financial arms race, with Democratic candidates spending hundreds of thousands to make it through both a primary election and expected runoff.

While some GOP incumbents may have posted comparatively weak second quarters, months and years of previous fundraising keep them on strong footing going forward.

"These Democrats are off to a great start, but this is a long game, and most of them will have to do even better," said Gonzales.

Other noteworthy fundraising:

Disclosure: Joseph Kopser has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune. A complete list of Tribune donors and sponsors can be viewedhere.

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Four Texas Republicans in Congress were just outraised by Democratic challengers - Texas Tribune