Paul Ryan for Congress has $9.4 million cash on hand

If any local candidates want to take on House Speaker Paul Ryan next year, they're going to face some pretty daunting odds to topple the Republican from Janesville.

Ryan for Congress had $9.4 million cash on hand at the end of March, and that was after it shipped $1.5 million to the National Republican Congressional Committee. Overall, Team Ryan sent $16.4 million to the national group in the first quarter.

Susan Jacobson, finance director for Ryan for Congress, said Wednesday that Ryan was "grateful" for the strong support.

"These resources will support Paul’s campaign, but he is also proud to support his fellow Republican office holders and candidates in Wisconsin. He looks forward to joining many of them at the 2017 State Convention in the Wisconsin Dells in May,” Jacobson said in a statement.

During the quarter, Ryan for Congress sent $4,000 each to Republican congressmen Mike Gallagher, Sean Duffy, Glenn Grothman and Jim Sensenbrenner. Ryan's leadership PAC, Prosperity Action PAC, sent $5,000 to Duffy, Grothman and Sensenbrenner and $10,000 to Gallagher.

Already this year, Ryan boosted local GOP events during the Milwaukee Reagan Day Dinner, Waukesha Lincoln Day Dinner, Rock/Walworth Lincoln Day Dinner and the Racine/Kenosha Lincoln Day Dinner.