In her first month as the official Democrat presidential candidate, Kamala Harris raised three times the amount of funds the Trump campaign raised.
According to the Harris campaign, she has $404 million at her disposal for the final two months before election day. Of this, $370 million will be used for a massive media campaign and for salaries of more than 2,000 staff members across 310 offices.
Harris’s campaign manager, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, said in a statement:
“In just a short time, Vice President Harris’ candidacy has galvanized a history-making, broad and diverse coalition—with the type of enthusiasm, energy, and grit that wins close elections. As we enter the final stretch of this election, we’re making sure every hard-earned dollar goes to winning over the voters who will decide this election.”
This follows the Harris campaign’s similarly lucrative July, prior to the Democratic National Committee’s announcement of Harris as the Democrat nominee, when $310 million was raised. The outpouring of support spurred this following President Biden’s announcement that he would drop out of the US election race. Harris’ campaign is the larger of the two running for office this election cycle. Therefore, it needs massive funding to operate at full strength.
“What we have got right now is the kind of grassroots enthusiasm that money can’t buy,” said Harris deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty. “It gives us a really significant cash advantage, but that cash advantage is a bit deceptive because all that money is committed to the things we need to do to win.”
The Harris campaign’s donation number for August includes every donation, including small contributions. According to the Harris campaign, almost one-fifth of donors were either Republicans or Independents. Three in four donors were new donors who had not donated to the Biden campaign previously.
Harris campaign vs. Trump campaign funding
Meanwhile, the Trump campaign announced that it had raised $295 million, which is $109 million less than the amount the Harris campaign raised. Those of the Trump campaign feel they have enough funding and resources to win the election.
Brian Hughes, senior advisor for the Trump Campaign, said in a statement:
“With Republicans united and a growing number of Independents and disaffected Democrats crossing partisan lines, the Trump-Vance campaign has momentum for the final stretch of the race. These fundraising numbers from August are a reflection of that movement and will propel President Trump’s America First movement back to the White House so we can undo the terrible failures of Harris and Biden.”
The numbers from the respective campaigns do not include Federal Elections Commission filings. The Federal Elections Commission must approve donations to candidate campaigns before they can be used.
