A day after Donald Trump’s team unofficially confirmed strong inflows of campaign funding in the second quarter, rival candidate Ron DeSantis gave details regarding the Florida governor’s fundraising.
“DeSantis raised $20 million in funds in the first six weeks of his campaign for the Republican presidential primary race,” said Never Back Down, the political action committee, or PAC, supporting his presidential run in a statement on Thursday.
DeSantis announced his candidacy on Twitter Spaces on May 24.
The PAC also confirmed that it has amassed $130 million in funds since the committee was launched in early March.
“The figures from the DeSantis campaign and from Never Back Down illustrated the Florida governor’s fundraising prowess as he aims to defeat front-runner and former president Donald Trump for the GOP nomination next year,” said PAC in a statement.
The $20 million was hauled in less than half the time that took for Trump to raise $35 million, the PAC pointed out. This was the largest first-quarter filing from any non-incumbent Republican candidate in more than a decade, the PAC said citing comments from DeSantis’ team.
In comparison, Trump’s team raised only $18.3 million during his first two fundraising quarters, namely the fourth quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023, it added.
“Joe Biden’s leftist policies are destroying the country, and Republicans are excited to invest in a winner ready to lead America’s revival,” said Generra Peck, DeSantis’s campaign manager in a tweet.
“We are grateful for the investment, so many Americans have made to get this country back on track.”
Trump’s team Wednesday touted that the former president nearly doubled its fundraising in the second quarter. Reports suggest the surge may have to do with his team’s solicitations in the wake of his indictment. Large donors also contributed as Trump’s campaign hosted its first in-person fundraiser at his Bedminster golf club in June.
Full funding details will reportedly be released by Trump’s team through the Federal Election Commission later this month.
Trump is the front-runner in the Republican presidential primary race, with numbers compiled by FiveThirtyEight showing that he was preferred by 52% of the voters compared to the 23.3% scored by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is a distant second.
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Edited by Judy J. Rotich and Newsdesk Manager
