By Jeff Mason
(Reuters) – US President Joe BidenThe Democratic campaign and its allies raised $264 million in the second quarter, including $127 million in June and a record amount of grassroots fundraising on the day of Biden’s disastrous debate against Donald Trumpaccording to Biden’s campaign.
According to the campaign team, $240 million is available for the Democratic president’s re-election campaign.
Biden’s team is eager to show off its fundraising chops after the president’s poor performance in the debates led some Democrats to call for him to resign as the party’s presidential nominee.
Biden’s team spent Sunday and Monday in difficult phone conversations with key campaign financiers, who questioned whether the 81-year-old Democrat should remain in the race after his poor performance in the debates.
Thursday was the biggest day for fundraising from small campaign donors, followed by Friday, when concerns about the debate caused panic in Democratic circles.
“Our second quarter fundraising is a testament to the dedicated and growing base of supporters who stand firmly behind the President and Vice President. It is clear evidence that our voters understand the choice in this election between President Biden fighting for the American people and Donald Trump fighting for himself as a convicted felon,” Biden’s campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said in a statement.
In the second quarter, 95 percent of donations were less than $200. The campaign emphasized this to show broad support from average Americans rather than relying too heavily on wealthy, high-net-worth donors.
The total fundraising figures include donations to the Biden campaign, the Democratic National Committee and joint fundraising committees.
The reelection campaign spent the money on more than 200 campaign offices and more than 1,000 staffers in hotly contested states that Biden needs to win to defeat Trump, a Republican, in November.
Trump has also been pulling in big donations. His campaign and the Republican National Committee said last month they had raised $141 million in May, nearly double the previous month’s haul thanks to an outpouring of support following his conviction in a hush-money trial.
(Reporting by Jeff Mason; Editing by Michael Perry)
