Kamala Harris’s campaign raised more than four times as much as Donald Trump’s effort in August, capitalizing on the surge of Democratic enthusiasm during the first full month of her presidential campaign. But the super PACs aligned with Trump are continuing to raise large sums from high-dollar donors as the two candidates enter the final sprint before November.
Harris’s campaign raised $190 million in August, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission on Friday night, and she spent almost $174 million in August — ending the month with $235 million in cash on hand. The campaign spent more than $135 million on media buys and ad production; more than $6 million on air travel; about $4.9 million on payroll and related taxes; and $4.5 million on text messaging.
The Trump campaign’s report showed that he raised $43 million in August and spent $61 million, with $135 million in cash to spend at the beginning of September. His campaign spent more than $47 million on advertisements, alongside $10.2 million on direct mail to potential voters and around $670,000 on air travel.
The Republican National Committee reported Friday night that it raised $40 million in August and ended the month with $79 million in cash on hand. It was both outraised and outspent by its Democratic counterparts, who raised $68 million and spent $84 million to end the month with $50 million in cash on hand.
Earlier this month, Harris officials said her effort and coordinated committees — groups that are jointly raising money for her campaign — raised $361 million in August compared with $130 million raised by Trump’s coordinated effort. But reports that show that full picture will not be available until later this year because some file quarterly rather than monthly. Her campaign built off the excitement in key moments, including her selection of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate and the surge of voter interest around the Democratic National Convention. Her aides have said that almost 3 million donors contributed to the August totals for the coordinated committees and that about a third of them were giving for the first time this cycle.
Harris received a surge of cash in the 24 hours after the Sept. 10 debate with the former president, raising $47 million during that period, according to the campaign.
Harris’s flush coffers have allowed her to build out a campaign operation with at least 2,000 aides and 312 offices across the battleground states at the same time she has held an advantage over Trump with her budget for television and digital ads. The Trump campaign, which is relying on outside groups to power its ground game, has not disclosed comparative details about the size of its operation.
Still, reports filed with the FEC on Friday night showed millions of dollars in contributions to Trump-aligned super PACs that are engaged in an intensive effort to cast Harris in a negative light just as many voters are learning about her background and credentials for the first time.
One of the highest profile groups running ads criticizing Harris is Make America Great Again Inc., which has been funded in large part by Timothy Mellon, a reclusive heir to the Mellon family banking fortune. In mid-July, Mellon gave $50 million to Make America Great Again Inc. — bringing the total that he has donated to the group during the 2023-24 cycle to at least $115 million.
MAGA Inc. raised $25 million in August and spent $90 million. The group’s top donors during the period included Wisconsin-based billionaire Diane Hendricks ($10 million), chairman and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald Howard Lutnick ($5 million), hedge fund executive Paul Singer ($5 million) and Texas philanthropist Annette Caldwell Simmons ($2 million).
Future Forward, the largest Democratic-leaning super PAC, raised nearly $37 million in August. The group received $3 million from Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz and $1 million from Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings. Major environmental groups were also major donors to the group, including the League of Conservation Voters victory fund ($9.2 million), Climate Power Action ($4.5 million) and EDF action votes ($3.9 million).
The Preserve America super PAC bankrolled by billionaire Miriam Adelson, which is also airing ads on Trump’s behalf, is expected to raise as much as $100 million for that effort by Election Day, according to a person familiar with the group’s plans, but their latest campaign finance reports will not be filed until next month. During the 2020 presidential campaign, Adelson and her late husband Sheldon gave more than $90 million to Preserve America, accounting for the vast majority of the money the group raised.
And Save America, the leadership PAC that has been tasked with paying many of Trump’s personal legal bills, reported raising $2,138 but spending $1.9 million to pay lawyers. At the end of August, it owed various legal firms $3.6 million and had $4.8 million in cash on hand.
Despite Harris’s cash advantage, her advisers are urging donors and bundlers to push ahead so they can fund what Harris-Walz Campaign Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon has described a “relentless battleground operation” that could determine the outcome in a razor-thin race.
O’Malley Dillon argued in a recent memo to Harris fundraisers and supporters that Democrats face more challenges than Republicans in charting their potential paths to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency.
On Friday, former president Barack Obama and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton headlined separate fundraisers for Harris in Los Angeles. Harris is headed to New York this weekend to mingle with donors. The campaign is also planning a fundraiser with Harris in Los Angeles on Sept. 29 with photo opportunities starting at $50,000, according to an invitation reviewed by The Washington Post, and guests who give the maximum of almost $1 million are invited to a join a more intimate reception with Harris.
Harris is using her largesse to help with other close races around the country. Earlier this month, the Harris campaign and the Democratic National Committee announced a plan to transfer almost $25 million to help down-ballot candidates in state and federal races. That will include $10 million transfers to the Democratic congressional and senatorial campaign committees as they seek to build majorities in the House and Senate.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee outraised the National Republican Congressional Committee $22.3 million to $9.7 million. The NRCC was bolstered by a $289,100 donation from Elon Musk, the largest he has reported to the FEC so far this year. The gift was split between the general, headquarters and legal proceedings funds.