Washington: US Vice President Kamala Harris, who could become the first presidential candidate of Indian and African heritage following President Joe Biden's surprise exit from the election race on Sunday, has made a new fundraising record on Monday (local time) as her team raised over $81 million within 24 hours as Democrats are overwhelmingly backing her to take on Republican candidate Donald Trump.
The massive haul made in the 24-hour period since Biden's announcement includes money raised across the campaign, the Democratic National Committee and joint fundraising committees and is the largest 24-hour fundraising by either side in the 2024 campaign. "The historic outpouring of support for Vice President Harris represents exactly the kind of grassroots energy and enthusiasm that wins elections," said campaign spokesperson Kevin Munoz.
This came hours after Future Forward, the largest super PAC in Democratic politics, announced it had secured $150 million in commitments over the same period from donors who were “previously stalled, uncertain or uncommitted", according to a senior adviser. Some fundraisers were reluctant after Biden's poor debate performance on June 27 raised concerns among Democrats over his age and mental fitness.
What does this mean?
The campaign said over 8,88,000 grassroots donors made donations in the past 24 hours, 60 per cent of whom made their first contribution of the 2024 cycle. "There is a groundswell behind Kamala Harris and Donald Trump is terrified because he knows his divisive and unpopular agenda can't stand up to the vice president's record and vision for the American people," Munoz added.
Though Biden's endorsement almost seals Harris' position as the presidential nominee of her party, she still needs to get elected by the party's delegates during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago from August 19-22. Biden has won 3,896 delegates as against 1,976 required to win the party's presidential nomination.
The massive haul puts Harris in a dominant position to secure the Democratic Party’s formal presidential nomination at next month’s national convention — if not sooner. This also means that she and her allies can compete with Donald Trump, who also has generated stunning fundraising totals in recent weeks, backed by businessmen like Elon Musk, Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.
The Vice President’s 24-hour fundraising total easily bested the $50 million Trump raised immediately after felony convictions and the $38 million Biden secured over the four days that followed last month’s disastrous debate performance. However, some donors are hesitant to back Harris as they seek to wait and watch how she is performing.
Harris gets overwhelming support from Democrats
Since Biden's announcement, Harris has received the backing of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, ex-President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton. An "overwhelming majority" of state Democratic Party chairs have announced their support for Harris as their nominee for president, the Association of State Democratic Committees (ASDC) has said in a statement. Biden's exit showed fresh signs of unity as elected officials and political organisations have also rallied before the Vice President.
An Associated Press survey finds Kamala Harris has the early backing of over half of the convention delegates following Joe Biden’s exit from the presidential race. She had the backing of 1,691 delegates, while a candidate requires the support of 1,976 delegates on the first ballot of that vote to win the nomination. Harris has been spending much of her time making more than 100 calls to Democratic officials to line up their support for her candidacy.
In her first speech, Harris launched an attack on Trump, saying he wants to "take the country backwards" by weakening the middle class and failed tax policies. She also recounted her role as a prosecutor, saying, "In those roles, I took on perpetrators of all kinds -- predators who abused women, fraudsters who ripped off consumers, cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain. So, hear me when I say I know Donald Trump's type."
Harris said building up the middle class would be at the center of her presidency along with other priorities including gun control and reproductive rights. Harris emphasised her commitment to uniting the Democratic Party to defeat Trump, highlighting her diverse background and generational contrast with Trump. She has been vocal on abortion rights, a critical issue for younger voters.
Harris' campaign aims to wrap up her presidential nomination by Wednesday night by securing a majority of the nearly 4,000 Democratic convention delegates needed to win. The Democratic National Committee is charting a virtual plan for selecting a new nominee before the convention.
(with inputs from agencies)
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