Washington: Vice-President Kamala Harris raised $200 million in the week since she entered the 2024 presidential contest, highlighting the surge of enthusiasm among Democrats for their new presumptive nominee and helping to counter a Republican blitz that saw Donald Trump pull ahead in the money race.
Harris’ campaign announced the tally on Sunday, with communications director Michael Tyler characterising it as a “record-shattering haul.” The campaign said 66 per cent came from first-time donors.
The latest figures expand the $81 million she raised in the first day after President Joe Biden’s exit — an amount the campaign called the largest 24-hour fundraise of any candidate in history.
The fundraising is the latest demonstration of how Democrats are coalescing behind the vice-president, who only launched her candidacy a week ago after Biden’s decision to end his reelection campaign and endorse her.
Harris has already sewn up the support of enough delegates to clinch the nomination and is carrying out a search for her running mate.
On Friday, she also received the support of former President Barack Obama.
Biden’s debate debacle and the ensuing intra-party fight over his future damaged his campaign’s finances as donors became reluctant to give money to a president, 81, facing questions about his mental acuity and ability to beat Trump in November’s election.
The Biden campaign entered July with $96 million cash on hand following a spending spree that depleted about 93 per cent of the money it raised in June. The burn rate far exceeded rival Trump, whose campaign spent just 46% of the money it raised in June and had $128 million in the bank. Biden’s campaign continued to spend even as some polls showed Trump with an edge after the debate and as calls for the incumbent to end his bid grew.
That situation marked a stunning turnaround from earlier in the contest, which saw Biden build up a sizeable money advantage, aided in part by the lack of a serious Democratic challenger and with Trump dealing with an at-times bitter GOP primary and multiple court cases that drained his coffers.
Trump’s fundraising has surged in recent months — bolstered by appeals to big-dollar Republican donors and support from Wall Street and corporate executives drawn to his economic agenda. Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, the world’s richest person according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, said he is “making some donations” to a super political action committee supporting the former president, though at a “much lower level” than has been reported. People familiar with the matter had said Musk is pledging to pour $45 million a month into the pro-Trump group.
Trump and the Republican National Committee raised $331 million in the second quarter, beating the $264 million Biden and the Democratic National Committee raised.
Democratic Wall Street donors are also mobilizing to tap their networks and help Harris close the fundraising gap with Trump.
Trump’s campaign filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission claiming Biden’s transfer of his $96 million violates the law. It poses a novel legal question but many campaign finance experts say the transfer is probably allowed.
