By Alex Knott, CQ Staff

Georgia Democratic Senate candidate Jim Martin has stepped up his fundraising efforts against incumbent Saxby Chambliss , but his recent gains moving into the final full week before their Dec. 2 runoff may not be enough.

Chambliss still leads Martin in cash on hand by nearly $900,000, according to the latest disclosure reports filed by the candidates through the Senate records office.

Martin, whose campaign is picking up increased help from outside groups, raised $2.3 million from Oct. 16 through Nov. 12 compared to Chambliss’ receipts of $1.9 million. But he still has only $617,000 in the bank to Chambliss’ $1.5 million

The most recent receipts for the two campaigns, however, provides only a glimpse into how much money is being spent to influence what has become a pivotal race for the Senate this year. For example, nearly $600,000 in independent expenditures from outside groups has flowed into the Georgia Senate race, according to a CQ MoneyLine analysis of electronic filings, which does not include reports from the senatorial party committees.

Some 87 percent of those funds have favored Chambliss. The expenditures do not include the more than $1.4 million spent since the Nov. 4 election on electioneering efforts that mention either Martin or Chambliss in advertisements. The three primary groups behind the ads have been the conservative- or Republican-leaning groups, Americans for Job Security, Susan B. Anthony List and Freedom’s Watch Inc.

The contest is one of the two outstanding Senate races that could help determine whether the Democrats control 58 seats next year or 60. The other undecided race is in Minnesota, where Republican Sen. Norm Coleman and Democratic challenger Al Franken are awaiting the results of tight recount.

Both Chambliss and Martin were on the Nov. 4 ballot, but neither crossed the vote threshold of 50 percent, forcing a runoff that is now drawing the aggressive attention of both national parties.

In an effort to attract even more money, both candidates have formed multiple joint fundraising committees with their parties. As a result, Chambliss has raised $829,600 from political action committees and another $43,200 in party donations in recent weeks. Martin, meanwhile, has pulled in $262,000 from PACs.