As the general election comes into focus, one thing is clear: President Joe Biden is winning the fundraising race.
His cash advantage is real, and recent events like a $26 million New York City fundraiser only widen his advantage over former President Donald Trump.
But they are more than just a sign of campaign prowess. The fundraising lead will also give the Biden campaign three significant advantages as it heads into the general election.
- Biden is the candidate voters need to learn more about — and ads let him do that. Trump has no problem being heard by his voters, while Biden has significant difficulties getting his accomplishments to break through with the voters he needs the most. His full coffers have allowed the campaign to run ads on his accomplishments historically early — particularly with Black, Hispanic and young voters who supported him in 2020 but have yet to break his way.
- The divided Republican base means Biden has nontraditional target voters to reach, which costs money. The significant support Nikki Haley won in the Republican primary, in some cases even after dropping out, is a sign that the party is not unifying as much as Trump needs. If the Biden campaign was not so flush with cash, it would have to choose between communicating with Democratic voters or playing offense with moderate Republicans. Now, it can do both.
- Biden can expand the playing field. Money gives his team flexibility, leaving the cash-strapped Trump campaign vulnerable in more states. On Monday, for example, a Florida court ruled that a six-week abortion ban could take effect, prompting the Biden campaign to declare the state “winnable.” That may or may not be true, given Trump's strength in his adopted home state. However, the Trump campaign can't afford to dismiss this as a bluff because it knows that Biden has the money to run a real campaign in the state. Even if Biden loses Florida, building a campaign operation there will force the Trump team to spend more money than it intended to win his home state, draining it from other states he needs to win.
The Florida play shows just how much of a threat the cash advantage is to Trump: The more money Biden has, the more he can bleed from his opponent.
