Harris Raises $47 Million in 24 Hours After Debate... What About Trump?

Trump is Private... NYT "Signs of Donor Defection"

On the 10th (local time), during the TV debate between the two major party presidential candidates in the United States, Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris secured a decisive victory, leading to projections that she could further overwhelm Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump in terms of campaign fundraising.

According to The New York Times (NYT), the Harris campaign announced that Vice President Harris raised $47 million in campaign funds within 24 hours after the TV debate. This is the second-largest 24-hour fundraising amount since Harris officially announced her presidential bid, following the $81 million raised in a 24-hour period. The Harris campaign stated, "This came from 60,000 individual donors who contributed to one of several campaign committees and PACs supporting Harris and running mate Tim Walz."

Following the first presidential TV debate between the two candidates, assessments that Vice President Harris decisively defeated former President Trump have been followed by active fundraising. CNBC reported, "Harris was widely recognized as the winner of the ABC-hosted TV debate," adding, "Republican strategists also agree that Trump was shaken by Harris's confrontational style and the moderator's real-time fact-checking."

While the Trump campaign did not disclose the amount of campaign funds raised during the same period, NYT explained that several high-dollar Trump donors have shown signs of defection after the TV debate. This is why analyses suggest that former President Trump will fall further behind Vice President Harris in campaign fundraising after the TV debate. Former President Trump has stated that there will be no further debates following this TV debate.

After the TV debate, the differing financial situations of the two candidates' campaigns have become apparent in their schedules. Vice President Harris is known to have no fundraising events she will attend in person other than the Washington event on the 14th, whereas former President Trump plans to attend fundraising events in Utah and California, which are not battleground states. NYT noted, "This partly reflects the financial pressure Trump is experiencing," explaining, "It is the reason he is seeking regions outside battleground states to fill his coffers."

Earlier, after President Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race in July, the Harris campaign raised $361 million over the past month, more than double the Trump campaign's $103 million. As of early September, the Harris campaign reportedly holds a cumulative $444 million in campaign funds, while the Trump campaign has only $295 million for the same period.

The Harris campaign plans to intensify final campaign advertising with relatively abundant funds. According to AdImpact, the Harris campaign intends to spend $130 million more than the Trump campaign on TV and radio campaign ads during the last six weeks leading up to the election.