Five Republican candidates hope to be the GOP pick in the race for the Senate seat currently held by Evan Bayh in the May 4 Indiana Primary. Bayh announced in February that he would not seek re-election because he no longer loves congress; polling data suggested the two-termer faced an uphill battle for reelection.

Many of the Republican candidates have received endorsements from current members of Congress. Rep. Mike Pence, of Indiana’s 6th congressional district, endorsed former Indiana Sen. Dan Coats for the job; Coats was recruited by national party officials to run. So far, Coats is the Republican front-runner, and has raised nearly $500,000–mostly from individual contributions, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. His most recent fundraiser in Party Time’s database was a $2,400-per-person reception and dinner at Bobby Van’s Grill on March 22.

Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., made headlines by backing Indiana State Senator Marlin A. Stutzmann, who displays the endorsement prominently on his website. Stutzman has raised a little more than $250,000, according to CRP.

Other GOP candidates include former 8th congressional district Rep. John Hostettler, financial adviser Don Bates Jr., and businessman Richard Behney. Hostettler, who has raised about $52,000, has received the endorsement of Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas.

The winner of the GOP primary will face Democratic Rep. Brad Ellsworth, of Indiana’s 8th Congressional District, who has raised more than $1 million; Ellsworth does not face a primary opponent–he was chosen by officials in Indiana’s state Democratic party.

Though he won’t run again, Bayh has held two fundraisers; one on April 2, hosted by the high-profile law and lobbying firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer, and one on March 10th, for a concert hosted by the staff of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions.

Many lawmakers are taking advantage of the warm spring weather by holding short vacation-style fundraisers outside the beltway.

Senator Jim DeMint, R-S.C., has invited constituents to a trip to South Carolina from April 9 to 10, for a fundraiser aptly named the “Spring Escape to South Carolina.” DeMint is asking for the donation of $3,000 per PAC and $1,500 per Individual.

At the same time, Democratic Caucus Chair Rep. John Larson will travel far from his home state of Connecticut to host a Napa Valley Wine Tasting Weekend to benefit his leadership PAC, Synergy PAC. The weekend includes a bocce tournament, vineyard tour, wine tasting, dinner and breakfast with Larson. His invitation calls for $5,000 donations per PAC.

Not to be outdone, Rep. Kay Granger, R-Texas, will hold her 8^th annual Fiesta Fundraiser in Fort Worth from April 11 to April 13. Attendees can choose one of three packages that include golf and breakfast, lunch and dinner.  She requests $3,000 per PAC and $2,000 per individual as the maximum donation.

Over the course of 2009–the first full calendar year that the Party Time website has been in existence–we’ve collected and posted more than 3,660 invitations to congressional fundraisers and parties. That’s an average of 10 for every day of the year, 70 per week, and more than 300 per month.

We don’t know what portion this represents of all the parties that occur. We do know it’s not all of them. For example, we’ve been successful in collecting weekly lists of parties from three out of four of political party committees–the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), and the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC). However, despite repeated attempts to secure the information, we’re missing the roster from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC). (We’ll keep trying.)

Nevertheless, Party Time represents the most robust collection of these invitations that have ever been collected and made available to the public in a database. So, with a big caveat that these totals reflect what we have in our data, which are incomplete, here’s what we saw in 2009.

1. Top Congressional Partiers. The members of Congress who have the most parties listed in our database are: 1. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC), with 35; 2. Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), 34; 3. Rep. John Sullivan (R-OK), 33; 4. Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO), with 30; and 5.  Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT), 29.

2. Will party for others. The lawmakers who appear most often on other candidates’ invitations as a draw for donors looks like a who’s who of the Congressional leadership: 1. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD), with 47; 2. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH), with 35; 3. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), with 32 (Cornyn is chairman of the NRSC); 4. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC), with 30; and 5. House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA), with 29.

3. Most generous hosts. The lobbyists whose names appear most often on our invitations as hosts are: 1. Dan Gans, Polaris Government Relations, with 29; 2. Jocelyn Hong (Twenty-First Century Group), with 22;  3. Tim Rupli, (Timothy R. Rupli & Associates) with 19 (Also check out all the party’s at Rupli’s Capitol Hill townhouse.); 4. Tony Podesta (Podesta Group), with 14; and Louis Dupart (Normandy Group), with 14. Keep in mind that the names of hosts in our database are not yet standardized, and with that work done, other lobbyists might rise to the top.

4. The month most partied: June. We’ve got 608 invitations to congressional fundraisers in June, the most of any month. The next runner up is March, with 529, and then September, with 446. Fundraising tends to peak in these months because they mark the end of a quarter. Candidates  want to report big numbers to the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC) to intimidate any potential challengers.

5. Most popular partying spots. 1. Capitol Hill Club, 439; 2. Johnny’s Half Shell, 229; 3. National Democratic Club Townhouse, 159; 4. Charlie Palmer Steak, 147; and 5. Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar, 125. This list looks very similar to last year’s, showing that congressional partiers are creatures of habit. (And convenience–these locations are a hop, skip, or a jump away from their offices on Capitol Hill.)

Following up on yesterday’s post on how Sen Arlen Specter is the top congressional partier this month, with a dozen fundraisers, here are some other lawmakers who stand out for multiple parties this frenzied month:

Rep. Debbie Halvorson (D, IL), with seven parties;

Sen. Jim DeMint (R, SC), with six parties;

Rep. Thad McCotter (R, MI), with six parties;

Rep. John Larson (D, CT), with six parties;

Sen. Mark Souder (R-IN), with five parties;

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI), with five parties;

Rep. John Sullivan (R-OK), with five parties; and

and Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO), with five parties.

What’s most striking, however, is how spread out among lawmakers and PACs the fundraising invitations we’ve collected are. Out of 427 invitations collected as of today, 269 are for different people or PACs. So that’s an average of 1.5 parties per person or organization.

Jumping off from USA Today reporter Fredreka Schouten’s reporting last week on fundraising at ritzy locales, here are some more upcoming fundraising parties that are taking place way outside the beltway.

Rep. Joe Crowley of New York has two different weekends listed for his “I Love NYC” weekend fundraiser, May 1-3 and June 12-14. California Rep. Loretta Sanchez also has an NYC weekend in the works, March 13, 15.

California Rep. Ellen Tauscher is charging $2,500 for PACs and $1,000 for individuals to attend a weekend retreat at the Inn at Perry Cabin on Maryland’s Eastern shore.

Rep. Jim DeMint from South Carolina is hosting a “family weekend and golf outing” at the Fazio Harbor Course at Wild Dunes. There will be lots of golf, of course, but also plenty of food and an awards ceremony to boot. This event is a fundraiser for a joint committee–the proceeds are split according to complicated rules between DeMint’s Senate 2010 campaign and his leadership PAC, the Senate Conservatives Fund PAC.

For sports lovers, specifically Arizona sports lovers, Rep. Ed Pastor has his 17th annual “All Sports Weekend” March 20-22. This includes two days of golf, a Phoenix Suns basketball game, Spring Training and all meals. But–your $3,000 doesn’t cover your hotel and airfare. That’s extra.  And, if you read the fine print, you also find that “Due to ticket limitation and rising costs on some events, we may not be able to accommodate guests.” Hmm.

If quail hunting is your style, North Carolina Rep. Heath Shuler is going on one March 13-14 at the Wynfield Plantation in Albany, Georgia. Says the invite, “We will be hunting off jeep with a guide and dogs. This is my favorite event of the season and I do hope that you will join me.”

(Thanks to Sunlight Foundation intern Tim Wiseman for ferreting these out).