American presidential elections tend to follow a predetermined set of steps in the endeavor to select the man to take over (or retain) the Oval Office. After candidates announce their run, primaries narrow down the field before parties announce their chosen champion a few months before the actual election.
For better or worse, that’s not how the 2024 presidential election is going to work — something Republicans and some Democrats afflicted with political OCD are still loath to admit. (READ MORE: Conservatives Turning the Tide … With Liberal Help)
On Sunday, presidential candidates turned in their campaign fundraising data for the quarter, revealing that — despite his neck-and-neck battle in the polls with Donald Trump — President Joe Biden is doing incredibly well in the war for campaign dollars. According to the Biden–Harris reelection team, the president managed to rake in $71 million between July and September and has $91 million in his coffers.
His campaign boasted that they raised “the highest total amassed by any Democratic candidate in history at this point in the cycle,” and that the total “is significantly more than any of the GOP 2024 campaigns, and the team’s cash-on-hand is widely expected to be more than the entire GOP field combined.”
By comparison, Trump is faltering. The former president announced before Sunday’s deadline that his campaign has made $46 million in the same period and currently has $38 million available. His campaign pointed out that this quarter is historically difficult for fundraising, adding that the sum is “an impressive testament to the overwhelming grassroots support behind President Trump that will lead to dominating victories.”
The differences are striking and highlight what we already knew but didn’t want to admit about the 2024 presidential election: There are no primaries this time around.
A Bad Election Strategy: Suicidal Divide and Conquer
The trouble is that, while some Republicans want to carefully consider all presidential options, Democrats made up their minds unofficially a long time ago. They’re ready to settle down and back Biden monetarily.
Republican donors — especially the more well-to-do ones — seem hesitant to back Trump and are diverting funds to candidates like Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley, who are contending for the No. 2 spot. DeSantis has raised $11.2 million, while Haley is sitting on $8.2 million. (READ MORE: Hillary Clinton Calls for ‘Formal Deprogramming’ of Trump Supporters)
Meanwhile, Biden’s nearest Democratic contender is laughably behind: Marianne Williamson has raised a mere $0.8 million.
The difference simply comes down to the laws governing election fundraising. Individuals can only donate up to $3,300 to a candidate committee per election but can give up to $41,300 to national party committees. Biden’s donors can contribute larger funds to the Democratic National Committee, which then find their way into Biden’s reelection coffers. But as the Republican National Committee is running a primary, Trump isn’t getting its funds. (READ MORE: It’s Not Easy Explaining America to Our Foreign Friends)
Whether you like Trump or not, the Republican refusal to recognize that a Democrat primary doesn’t seem to be in the cards has effectively resulted in a divide-and-conquer strategy — except that Republicans are doing it to themselves.