Billionaire Contributors Amplify Funds for Trump Campaign, Outpacing Biden's Donations in Race for the Presidency
In May, Trump's political ambitions received a significant boost with a whopping $50 million contribution from Timothy Mellon, a wealthy non-public figure and Mellon Bank heir, to a super PAC boosting his campaign. This substantial donation was the major contributor to the $68.8 million that the MAGA Inc. super PAC raised in May.
The haul by Biden's team in May was the second-best grassroots fundraising month for the president this election cycle, his campaign claimed, although it fell considerably short of the mind-boggling $141 million claimed by Trump and his political operation to have accumulated in the previous month. This surge was largely attributable to the millions raised in the aftermath of Trump's May 30 conviction in a New York criminal case for untruthfully documenting business records.
Biden's campaign announced on Thursday that the committees entered June with an impressive $212 million in funds. The Trump campaign, on the other hand, hasn't disclosed the total funds on hand for all committees yet.
The Biden team touted that their substantial war chest was instrumental in creating a robust campaign infrastructure and highlighted the hiring of over 1,000 staffers across battleground states, jointly with the Democratic Party.
"Our impressive and consistent fundraising has been growing consistently each month, a clear indication of growing enthusiasm for the President and Vice President," said Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Biden's campaign manager, in a statement. "The funds we are raising are significant and crucial, aiding in building out an operation that invests in reaching and convincing the voters who will decisively influence this election."
The amount announced by the Biden team does not include the recent fundraising events. Over the weekend, he collected an unprecedented $30 million – a Democratic record – at a high-profile event featuring former President Barack Obama and Hollywood celebrities like George Clooney and Julia Roberts.
Moreover, his campaign highlighted nearly $20 million in support of his reelection from former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Bloomberg, who previously contested against Biden in the 2020 Democratic primary, made a $929,600 donation to the Biden Victory Fund, the campaign's joint fundraising entity with Democratic Party committees. Additionally, he contributed $19 million to the FF PAC, the main super PAC dedicated to promoting Biden's reelection campaign, according to the entity's filing with federal regulators on Thursday.
Bloomberg's donation was first reported by The Washington Post.
Meanwhile, Mellon's $50 million donation to the Trump-aligned MAGA Inc. super PAC in May led to the planned $100 million advertising blitz by the super PAC over the summer. Overall, Mellon has donated $100 million to super PACs associated with presidential candidates, making him one of the biggest financial figures of the 2024 campaign. Before this donation, Mellon had contributed $25 million to the pro-Trump super PAC and another $25 million to the super PAC supporting the long-shot independent campaign of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The Kennedy-aligned super PAC, American Values 2024, did not report any additional donations from Mellon in its May filings. However, Democrats have used Mellon's financial support for both men as part of an attempt to portray Kennedy, a Democrat from a renowned family, as a spoiler candidate backed by the Republicans.
CNN's Arlette Saenz contributed to this report.
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Despite the Biden campaign's impressive $212 million fundraising in May and additional contributions from figures like Michael Bloomberg, Trump's political operation managed to amass a staggering $141 million in April, surpassing Biden's funds by a significant margin.
Michael Bloomberg, the former New York Mayor and 2020 Democratic primary candidate, contributed an additional $19 million to the main super PAC supporting Biden's reelection campaign in June, bringing his total donations to Biden's campaigns to over $111.8 million.
