Joe Biden and the Democratic National Committee have told their big-money fundraisers to start raising cash for the joint fundraising operation that will largely give resources to the party as a whole for this fall's elections.
Since at least last week, bundlers helping Biden's campaign have been asked to start encouraging their networks to back the "Biden Victory Fund," a committee that's dedicated to helping raise money both for the DNC and the campaign itself, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter. These people declined to be named as the discussions were held in private.
The committee allows donors to give up to $360,600. Of that max contribution, $5,600 goes directly to the Biden campaign. Many of Biden's donors have already had success getting their networks to give the maximum individual contribution of $2,800 to the campaign, and they are looking to the team effort with the DNC.
"Most of us have already tapped out our networks for the $2,800 per person, and we're now focusing on the bigger dollars through the joint vehicle," a Biden fundraiser said.
One of the people noted that most of the upcoming virtual fundraising events will be focused on raising funds for the committee, particularly as the party gears up for the general election versus President Donald Trump and Republicans up and down the ballot. The organization has one of its first events this week featuring Biden, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and former Obama campaign boss David Plouffe, according to an invitation.
All campaigns have been forced to go virtual during the coronavirus pandemic.
Representatives for Biden and the DNC did not return a request for comment.
Biden's campaign and the DNC have a great deal of fundraising ground to make up. The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee, along with their joint fundraising committees, combined to raise $63 million in March. They've been preparing for Trump's reelection battle since he was inaugurated.
During the first quarter, the Trump Victory joint fundraising committee benefited from six-figure donations from wealthy financiers such as GOP megadonor Robert Mercer and Steve Wynn, the former CEO of Wynn Casinos, who resigned from the company after being accused of sexual misconduct.
Biden's campaign surged in the wake of his run of primary victories on Super Tuesday in March, leading to the former vice president becoming the apparent Democratic nominee. He raised over $46 million that month. The DNC outraised the RNC with a $32 million haul over the same time period. Biden currently leads Trump in most national polls, with the Real Clear Politics polling average showing him up over the commander in chief by just over four points.
"The DNC is where the action will be," John Morgan, a Florida businessman backing Biden, recently told CNBC. He pointed to former campaign manager Greg Schultz becoming the go-between for the Biden team and the DNC as a sign that large parts of the fundraising will be tailored to the committee.
Biden's allies in the business community are becoming involved with pushing donors to give to the joint effort.
Blair Effron, a co-founder of the investment firm Centerview Partners, has signaled to his associates that he's looking to help organize future events and corral donors toward giving to the committee, one of the people said. He has been helping raise money for Biden since Sen. Kamala Harris dropped out of the race late last year. Effron did not respond to a request for comment.
Ron Conway, a Silicon Valley investor, told CNBC on Monday that he's looking to participate in some of the joint virtual fundraising events and noted that he will probably co-host a few of the gatherings. He has given $250,000 to the pro-Biden super PAC Unite the Country and over $17,000 to the DNC so far in the 2020 election cycle, records show.
The invitation to the Newsom-Plouffe event calls on potential co-chairs to write a check of $100,000 and for other attendees to give up to $5,600. Plouffe co-authored an op-ed on Monday in The New York Times with fellow former Obama strategist David Axelrod that called on Biden's team to improve their overall digital strategy if they want to beat Trump this fall.
