Trump campaign reports having $37M in the bank heading into the primaries

Former President Donald Trump’s campaign said it has $37 million in the bank, a strong sum heading into the winter that is all but sure to outpace his GOP primary rivals.

The cash on hand total — $36 million of which will be available for the GOP primary — is up from $22 million the Trump campaign had at the end of June. Although most Republican candidates have yet to publicly report numbers ahead of the Oct. 15 campaign finance deadline, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign said it had $5 million in the bank that can be spent on the primary after raising $15 million last quarter across his campaign, leadership PAC and joint fundraising committee.

But while Trump’s numbers are strong, it remains unclear exactly how much his presidential campaign actually raised during the third quarter. His campaign touted $45 million raised between July and September in a news release Wednesday, but a spokesperson confirmed that number is for his joint fundraising committee, not the campaign itself.

Trump’s campaign will officially report its fundraising numbers by Oct. 15, while the joint fundraising committee’s numbers will not be verifiable until January. Not all of the joint committee’s money goes to supporting Trump’s presidential bid.

The joint fundraising committee has long been Trump’s primary vehicle for soliciting donations, raising money for both his campaign and leadership PAC, Save America. The leadership PAC has picked up the tab for many legal expenses for Trump and his allies in the past few years. The joint fundraising committee also typically spends significantly on fundraising expenses — including more than $17 million on list rentals, digital ads and consulting and direct mail in the first half of this year — which makes it difficult to assess how much the committee ultimately has available to send to Trump’s campaign.

In the second quarter, for example, Trump’s team touted $35 million raised by his joint fundraising committee — but his campaign ultimately received only $15.2 million of that in transfers, according to its report filed with the Federal Election Commission. So while the joint fundraising committee raised $35 million, the campaign only reported $17.7 million in total receipts.

Still, the $45 million figure for the period covering July through September is an eye-popping sum. That represents donations made by Trump supporters, many of whom are small donors — a powerful indication of the former president’s support even if not all the money ends up in his campaign account.

Trump was indicted twice in the third quarter and had his mug shot taken in Georgia, an image the joint fundraising committee was quick to monetize with merchandise including mugs, T-shirts and posters. His team previously said the 24-hour period after his booking in Georgia was the strongest fundraising day of his campaign — bucking a previous trend of diminishing fundraising returns on his indictments.

Trump’s campaign, like every presidential campaign, is required to file quarterly reports that detail fundraising and spending, with the next report, for the third quarter, due on Oct. 15. In 2024, those reports will have to be filed on a monthly basis.

The joint fundraising committee, however, is required to report only its financial information twice per year in odd-numbered years under FEC rules. The next filing date for the committee is Jan. 31.

Meridith McGraw and Andrew Zhang contributed to this report.