“We have a lot of money left”— Donald Trump offers to help pay Kamala Harris’ reported $20M presidential campaign debt
Kamala Harris' campaign reportedly owes at least $20 million following Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 presidential election. Politico's California bureau chief Christopher Cadelago first claimed this in a tweet on November 7, writing:
"Kamala Harris's campaign ended with at least $20 million in debt, per two sources familiar. Harris raised over $1 billion and had $118 million in the bank as of Oct. 16."
Once the news spread, President-elect Donald Trump took to X on November 10 to offer help with Harris’ reported campaign debt. He wrote:
“I am very surprised that the Democrats, who fought a hard and valiant fight in the 2020 Presidential Election, raising a record amount of money, didn’t have lots of $’s left over. Now they are being squeezed by vendors and others.”
Trump continued:
“Whatever we can do to help them during this difficult period, I would strongly recommend we, as a Party and for the sake of desperately needed UNITY, do. We have a lot of money left over in that our biggest asset in the campaign was “Earned Media,” and that doesn’t cost very much. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Kamala Harris’ campaign reportedly outspent Donald Trump's team in every aspect
Following his triumph in the 2024 election, president-elect Donald Trump offered to assist in repaying the debts of Kamala Harris' campaign. Despite raising an estimated $1 billion, the Harris-Walz campaign is reportedly $20 million in debt.
Donald Trump made an offer in the name of unity in a post on X, urging his party to help the Democrats through these testing times. He noted that the "biggest asset" of his campaign was "earned media," or free media coverage, which "doesn't cost very much."
Meanwhile, the financial planning of the Harris-Walz campaign has drawn criticism. Matthew Boyle of Breitbart reiterated Cadelago's claims, writing on November 7 on X:
"The $20 million debt thing is real. [The Harris campaign's deputy campaign manager] Rob Flaherty, this staffer said, is currently shopping around the Kamala fundraising email list to anyone who wants it to try to raise the money back. This includes other campaigns and outside groups.”
Furthermore, the Washington Examiner reported on November 8 that Harris' campaign spent six figures to build a set for her October appearance on the popular podcast Call Her Daddy.
However, the episode only garnered 822,000 views, falling short of the 1 million audience target despite the high cost. In stark contrast, Donald Trump's appearance on Joe Rogan's show received over 47 million views.
Moreover, Newsweek reported on November 8 that according to AdImpact, a website that tracks the price and substance of advertisements, Harris' official campaign spent $1.1 billion on aired advertising and related reservations alone.
According to The Washington Examiner, by mid-October, Harris spent $880 million on the election, with $12.8 million of that going to a group of media, internet, and political strategists.
Among the companies involved, Village Marketing Agency received a substantial payout of $3.9 million. The agency reportedly sought to win over thousands of social media influencers to Harris' cause in an attempt to win over young voters.
Moreover, in September, Harris's campaign gave $1 million to Oprah Winfrey's production firm, Harpo. On November 8, the Washington Examiner also disclosed details about the suspected usage of the $1 billion fund by the Harris campaign.
