Harris, Democrats Took Fundraising Lead in July

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Facts

  • US Vice President Kamala Harris' main presidential campaign fundraising group revealed in federal disclosures on Tuesday that it raised $204M last month, while former Pres. Donald Trump's campaign disclosed $48M in July fundraising to the Federal Election Commission.[1]
  • Previously, Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, revealed $310M in combined July fundraising between her campaign and the party's main fundraising group. Trump, the Republican nominee, said its campaign fundraising combined with the party's fundraising totaled $138M last month.[1]
  • Harris held a similar advantage last month, with $219.7M compared to Trump's $151.3M. Trump had previously held the edge at the end of June before Pres. Joe Biden stepped aside as the Democratic nominee and endorsed Harris in July.[2]
  • The fundraising lead has switched several times. Democrats previously held the edge prior to May 30, when Trump was convicted on 34 felony fraud charges in New York and subsequently saw an increase in his fundraising.[3]
  • Meanwhile, the newest filings show that independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ended July with $3.9M on hand and has $3.5M in outstanding debts. This comes after Kennedy's running mate, Nicole Shanahan, Tuesday said that her campaign may fold and endorse Trump.[4]

Sources: [1]Reuters.com, [2]Forbes, [3]Washington Post and [4]CNN.

Narratives

  • Democratic narrative, as provided by The Daily Beast. Harris' unprecedented fundraising haul is another sign of how much her move to the top of the Democratic ticket has reinvigorated the party and its donors. Biden clearly salvaged this race for his party by stepping aside. Maybe the only thing Trump can hope for is another criminal conviction to motivate his donors again.
  • Republican narrative, as provided by Daily Caller. If Harris is so proud of her fundraising prowess, she should follow the precedent of every other Democratic presidential nominee of the modern era and reveal the identities of her biggest contributors. Many of them are likely to play a role in her administration, so Americans deserve to know what they would be getting. It's concerning that transparency in campaigns is vanishing.

Predictions