Biden may lose financial support due to debate failure - Axios

This decision is due to uncertainty about Biden's ability to win the presidential election in November. These concerns became particularly strong after the incumbent president's poor performance in last week's debate with Donald Trump.

Sources in business and political circles told the agency that some donors have already redirected funds to Congressional candidates, including Ruben Gallego, a current member of the House of Representatives running for Senate from Arizona.

According to a Democratic Party source, one donor increased their contribution to the Committee for the Election of Democrats to the Senate by 50%. Following the debates, candidates' campaign offices in states where Republicans and Democrats have equal chances of winning registered a "surge" in donations.

Dmitry Kochegurov, a senior research fellow at the Institute of the USA and Canada, noted that Democrats have essentially resigned themselves to Trump's victory and want to focus on strengthening their legislative positions. Winning the House of Representatives and retaining power in the Senate would allow them to paralyze Trump's policies in many areas.

Meanwhile, Pavel Dubravskiy, head of Dubravskiy Consulting, noted that the decline in financial inflows will not significantly harm Biden's campaign at this stage. According to the political strategist, funds are more important for congressional campaigns because the candidate's brand is the decisive factor at the presidential level. A weak brand for Biden is much more dangerous than the current slight decrease in funding.

Trump's campaign reported raising $331 million in Q2 2024. According to Democrats, Biden and his allies raised $264 million over the same period.

The agency noted that donors still need to make a final decision on mass redirection of funds and are awaiting new polls to understand how much the debates affected Biden's rating. According to a closed poll released by The Puck on June 30, 40% of those who voted for Biden in 2020 support his withdrawal from the presidential race, up from 25% in May. In swing states, 55% of voters supported the incumbent president's withdrawal from the campaign.

In the week since such counts began at the end of 2021, support for Biden dropped to a record low.

Joe Biden's unsuccessful debates

Last Thursday, June 27, the first round of debates between the main US presidential candidates Joe Biden and Donald Trump took place. During the discussion, the incumbent president appeared unconvincing and unprepared, losing the battle.

Following the defeat, several Democratic Party congressmen and senators considered replacing Biden as the presidential candidate. The most likely substitute is current Vice President Kamala Harris.

In particular, Democrats plan to sign a letter demanding Biden withdraw from the race.

On July 3, during Bloomberg Surveillance, Charles Myers, a major Democratic sponsor, said that Biden has "4-5" days to decide whether to run.

At the same time, Biden announced his intention to continue running and assured party colleagues of his readiness for re-election.