WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG) - Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden's campaign is holding off releasing its record September fund-raising total out of concern that it will slow giving in the final weeks of the race, according to three people familiar with the campaign's thinking.
The campaign is raising record sums of money and does not want to turn off donors from chipping in more or give President Donald Trump a rallying cry for his donors with just 25 days left.
The September haul will become public when the campaign and the Democratic National Committee file their monthly reports to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Oct 20.
The campaign also wants to have enough money for any legal battles it may have to fight after Election Day, if the results are challenged or there are complications with the large number of absentee ballots.
Bloomberg News first reported last week that the Democratic nominee's total fund-raising for September tops the then-record US$364.5 million raised in August, but the exact total was not immediately clear.
Rather than making a splash with an announcement of that total, the campaign has closely held the number for more than a week.
On Oct 1, 2016, Hillary Clinton announced September's total haul of US$154 million was her best month of fund-raising in the campaign. Her combined war chest of US$152.6 million was almost twice as much as Trump's total. But donors didn't feel the same urgency to contribute after hearing the big number, according to a Democratic fund-raiser who asked not to be identified because the information is confidential.
Biden campaign staff did not disclose the September fund-raising number on a call with the national finance committee this week. Donors received a briefing from John Anzalone, the campaign's pollster, and they were encouraged to keep seeking donations.
A Biden campaign aide said this is not the first time they have delayed announcing their fund-raising, pointing to the May report, which was not released til June 15.
The campaign brought in more than US$12 million on Wednesday alone, the day running mate Kamala Harris debated Vice-President Mike Pence in Salt Lake City. Harris has been a prolific fund-raiser for the campaign since she joined the ticket in August.
The delayed announcement is a break from the past several months when the campaign announced its fund-raising totals just days after the month ended. August's fund-raising numbers were released on Sept 2, July's figures on Aug 5 and June's numbers on July 1.
REVERSAL OF FORTUNES
Last month's record-breaking haul followed a flood of money coming into the Democratic fund-raising apparatus after the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Biden's campaign also raised US$31.5 million in just over 24 hours after the first debate with Trump.
In August, Trump and the Republican National Committee raised US$210 million, falling US$154 million short of Biden. The Trump campaign has not yet released its September fund-raising numbers.
Biden's fund-raising success reversed a massive financial advantage that Trump and the Republicans had just months ago. In April, Biden had about US$98 million in the bank compared to US$255 million for the incumbent.
Yet Democratic donor enthusiasm, driven by opposition to Trump and further energised by the selection of Harris as Biden's running mate, has given the former vice-president an unprecedented financial edge for a challenger.
Trump's re-election effort had US$325 million at the end of August, or US$141 million less than Biden's.
Two joint fund-raising committees, which raise money for the Biden campaign, the DNC and state parties, file quarterly and will report their numbers to the FEC on Thursday.
