Fundraising tip: As Pence and the rest of the GOP struggle, Trump and DeSantis are on their respective tiers

NEW YORK (AP) – Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis are winning the race to win the Republican presidential campaign, according to federal filings released Saturday. While some, like former Vice President Mike Pence, have struggled, others have reported substantial gains that ensure the Republican 2024 primary will be crowded for the foreseeable future.

On the Democratic side, President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign quickly made him a billionaire. But even Robert Kennedy, Jr., a hot topic in the Democratic primary, raised enough money not to be ignored.

Overall, the second-quarter filings with the Federal Election Commission for the 2024 presidential class, covering the period from April 1 to June 30, leave several open questions. there is For example, the total number of individual donors for each campaign, which is directly related to participation in the Republican debate, will not be known until the end of the month.

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Also, each candidate’s allied super PAC, which in some cases makes up the bulk of campaign funding, won’t provide updated numbers until the end of the month.

Still, a federal report offers some insight six months before the first primary vote is held. Here are some key points:

Trump and DeSantis in their respective weight classes

While Trump leads in most polls, he and DeSantis are in a different position when it comes to fundraising.

The Trump campaign recently confirmed that $35 million was received in the second quarter in a joint fundraiser split between the campaign and the Save America PAC. The campaign did not say how much of that $35 million went to campaigns and how much went to Save America, which has historically covered non-campaign costs such as Trump’s legal costs.

Average donations to the Trump campaign in 2024 now stand at $34, evidence of grassroots support, according to the campaign.

Earlier this week, DeSantis announced that he had raised $20 million over the course of the six-week race. Super PAC, an allied group of the governor of Florida, which is legally barred from cooperating with the campaign, said it had raised a staggering $130 million since the commission’s inauguration in March. More than half came from state-level political commissions once controlled by DeSantis.

Regardless of where the money came from, DeSantis’ fundraising will buy time to strengthen his candidacy as he struggles to catch Trump in the polls.

impact of discussion

The fundraising numbers have even more significance as they tie directly into the Republican Party’s first presidential debate next month.

Exceeding the 1% voter turnout threshold, the Republican National Committee states that candidates must have at least 200 unique donors per state or territory and at least 40,000 unique donors in 20 states and territories. We announced that we need to have donors.

Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, Senator Tim Scott, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and conservative businessman Vivek Ramaswamy said in recent days that the 40,000 donor threshold was reached. Announced. Pence has yet to make such an announcement.

Saturday’s federal filing did not provide a full explanation of such figures, which will not be revealed until the end of this month.

Overall, Haley’s campaign raised $7.3 million in the second quarter and ended June with $9.3 million left in the bank. This was when the leading Haley super PAC claimed $17 million in cash on hand.

Scott has raised $6.1 million since announcing his campaign in May. And Ramaswamy, a 37-year-old entrepreneur, raised more than $7.7 million in the quarter, including a $5 million loan from his personal fortune to the campaign. He finished his quarter with over $9 million in his pocket.

Christie, who ran just 25 days in the second quarter, raised $1.65 million through his campaign and reported nearly $1.6 million in bank deposits as of June 30.

Is Mr. Pence in trouble?

Pence raised less than $1.2 million in funding and closed the quarter with nearly $1.1 million in bank deposits, according to federal filings.

While it is still possible that the 40,000-donor threshold will eventually be reached to qualify for the Opening Debate, the former Vice President is unlikely to be excluded from the primetime event on Aug. 23. Extremely high.

Pence has struggled to find a footing since he launched his campaign in early June.

Pence has been a lifelong conservative and a staunch supporter of Trump while in office, criticizing Republican supporters for refusing to block Trump’s claim to win Biden on January 6, 2021. has been slandered by The former vice president had no legal standing to block the outcome of the election, despite Trump’s allegations to the contrary, leading to riots at the Capitol and radicalized Trump supporters to denounce Pence. shouted hanging.

Others seem to be having trouble collecting donations as well.

Former Arkansas Gov. Hutchinson announced a total of more than $743,000 in fundraising, including major campaigns and community fundraisers. He said on Friday it received donations from 3,928 unique donors from April to June. And since July 1, he has claimed donations from an additional 2,516 unique donors.

Miami Mayor Francis Suárez, the only Hispanic candidate in the Republican primary, has raised $945,000 since starting the campaign two weeks before the end of the quarter. California Conservative Larry Elder, one of two African-Americans seeking the Republican nomination, raised just $467,000.

Biden is strong, but not alone

Biden and the Democratic National Committee have raised more than $72 million for reelection in the 10 weeks since he announced his candidacy in 2024.

The president’s total fundraising includes contributions to the president’s campaign and to a network of community-funding arrangements with national and state political parties. That’s a huge amount, but President Barack Obama raised $85.6 million in the April-June period of 2011 when he launched his second term, but he announced his candidacy three weeks earlier. .

Nearly 400,000 donations totaled nearly 400,000, with 97% of donations under $200 and more than 30% of donors not giving to Biden in 2020, according to the Biden campaign.

Mr. Biden is in a particularly strong position, at least compared to Republicans, because he can put money into the general election. Incumbent presidents face only superficial opposition in the Democratic race for the nomination, but one of those opponents, Kennedy, raises enough money not to be completely ignored.

Kennedy’s campaign raised about $6.4 million in the quarter, leaving $4.5 million in the bank as of June 30. Meanwhile, the pro-Kennedy super PAC said it had raised more than $10 million to date.

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