Biden-allied groups stockpile $294 mln for battle with Trump

Democrat Joe Biden's presidential campaign and closely tied groups said on Wednesday they have gathered $294 million as they head into the final months of their election showdown with Republican President Donald Trump.

Democrat Joe Biden's presidential campaign and closely tied groups said on Wednesday they have gathered $294 million as they head into the final months of their election showdown with Republican President Donald Trump. Biden, who faces a well-financed sitting president in the Nov. 3 election, raised a near-record $140 million in the typically slow fundraising month of July.

The former vice president's campaign is hoping to erase a fundraising advantage long enjoyed by Trump, who has not yet reported his July fundraising numbers. The U.S. presidential campaign is entering its most important stretch. Democrats and Republicans are set to host their conventions this month.

The pageants have been scaled back due to the novel coronavirus, which has hit the United States particularly hard, but are still likely to be watched by millions of Americans. Biden is trying to gather as much money as possible as his campaign signals that it sees more Republican-leaning states where it can compete. The Democrat is leading in national polls as the economy struggles to contend with the pandemic.

The Biden campaign announced plans earlier on Wednesday to spend more than $280 million on television and digital advertising by Election Day, a figure that would all but guarantee that the Trump-Biden showdown will be the most expensive U.S. election in history. In June, Biden out-raised Trump for the second straight month, pulling in $141 million while the president hauled $131 million. In each case, the figures were new monthly records this year for the campaigns.

A representative of Trump's campaign was not immediately available for comment.