President Joe Biden’s campaign committee raised $19.9 million from April to June – less than its total as one of more than a dozen candidates in an open primary four years ago, though her political operation says she also raised an additional $52 million for Democratic Party groups.
Fundraising report highlights how Biden and his team have yet to fully commit to the 2024 election campaign and how they are leaning on the Democratic National Committee as a starting point for the year’s campaign efforts next. Only four people have been reported on the presidential campaign payroll: campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez, deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks, spokesperson Kevin Munoz and general counsel Jennifer Maury Riggan.
Biden’s campaign, the DNC and a joint fundraising effort that includes every state Democratic Party organization nationwide announced Friday that they raised a total of $72 million in the second quarter, but the campaign notably did not explain how this money was distributed among these groups. .
The nearly $20 million that has been poured into the campaign puts Biden directly slightly ahead of what former President Donald Trump has raised in his campaign committee over the same period, and behind what the Republican Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis raised in less time as a declared candidate.
It’s also a few million less than the amount Biden raised in the second quarter of 2019, when he raised $22 million while vying for the Democratic presidential nomination amid a crowded field. And that’s a far cry from the $46 million that President Barack Obama’s campaign committee raised during the equivalent quarter of his re-election bid 12 years ago.
However, circumstances have changed since 2019. Biden, the leader of the Democratic Party, works hand-in-hand with the Democratic National Committee, using his time and resources to help raise funds for his campaign and the party. And the money raised by both the national party as well as the 51 state and territory Democratic Party committees it is fundraising with will help fund its 2024 efforts across the country, as well as those of other Democrats on the party ticket.
That’s why Rodriguez said on Friday that she was “delighted to announce” fundraising, which she says will help the Biden campaign “build a strong foundation to win in 2024.” The DNC had $27.2 million in its bank account as of June 30, and tens of millions more are expected to be deposited into a joint fundraising account that will distribute more funds to the campaign and the party.
The campaign ended the quarter with more than $20 million in the bank, more than all but two Republican presidential candidates had in their accounts at the end of the quarter — Trump ($22 million) and the North Carolina senator. South Tim Scott ($21 million).
Just over $5.4 million of Biden’s campaign total came from donors who gave the maximum gift of $6,600 ($3,300 for the primary, $3,300 for the general election) to his campaign, meaning they can no longer donate for the 2024 election.
The Biden campaign spent just $1.1 million from April through June, and nearly a third of that spending was on “service fees,” mostly on the ActBlue online fundraising program. The campaign’s other largest expenses included $226,000 for “text message outreach,” $98,000 for “legal services,” and $96,000 for contribution refunds, which typically occur when a campaign goes realize that a donor has given more than what is legally allowed.
This article originally appeared on NBCNews.com