US Presidential elections: Joe Biden campaign outraises Donald Trump for second straight month

Democrat Joe Biden outraised President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign
for the second straight month and for the second quarter of 2020, figures
released Wednesday showed, highlighting robust enthusiasm for the White House
challenger.

Biden, the Democratic National Committee and related fundraisers brought in
a staggering $141 million in June, the campaign’s best fundraising month ever
and $10 million more than Trump and the Republican National Committee.

The second quarter of 2020 was a record haul for both campaigns, with Biden
coming out on top, $282.1 million against Trump’s $266 million for the
April-to-June period.

“This haul means for the second consecutive month we have outraised
Donald Trump’s campaign and demonstrates a surge in grassroots energy to elect
Joe Biden,” campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement.

Sixty-eight percent of Biden donors in June, the month he reached the number
of delegates needed to become the party’s presidential nominee, were first-time
contributors, she said.

Trump’s campaign reported that it holds a $295 million war chest. Team Biden
did not report its cash-on-hand figures, but Trump’s campaign said it maintains
a “vast” advantage over Biden in cash on hand.

Fundraising typically kicks into high gear in the six months before a
presidential election, and the record donations in part reflect robust digital
and online fundraising efforts by the campaigns during the coronavirus
pandemic.

Biden holds a substantial lead of 9.4 percent over the incumbent in national
polling, according to a RealClearPolitics poll aggregation.

Biden also leads in several swing states that helped propel Trump to victory
in 2016, including Florida, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Trump’s approval rating has slid with voters displeased with his handling of
the pandemic and the related economic crisis, as well as his response to
spirited protests against racial injustice.