Report: Ron DeSantis Campaign Raised $8.2 Million on Launch Day

Incumbent Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis arrives to speak to supporters at an electi
AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell
Paul Bois

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis kicked off his campaign for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination on Wednesday and reportedly pulled in a haul of $8.2 million in the first 24 hours.

Despite a glitchy campaign launch on Twitter, the first of its kind, the DeSantis campaign still reportedly pulled in huge sums of cash, signifying his contender status as he faces off against current GOP frontrunner former President Donald Trump. According to the campaign, DeSantis raised over $1 million in just one hour of the campaign launch, even with the reported glitches that erupted.

“The $8.2 million figure is more than the $6.3 million that Joseph R. Biden Jr. raised in his first 24 hours as a candidate in 2019, or the $6.1 million raised by former Representative Beto O’Rourke that same year,” noted the New York Times.

“The DeSantis sum includes both online contributions and donations secured by bundlers who had gathered on Thursday at the grand ballroom in the Four Seasons in Miami for what was called a Ron-O-Rama to make fund-raising calls for the campaign,” noted the Times.

Casey DeSantis via Storyful

DeSantis campaign spokesman Bryan Griffin told the Times the donations would go toward both the primary and the general election. Per election laws, the campaign has a cap of $3,300 per person. All funds used will go toward the campaign expenses, and the $8.2 million raised does not factor in money raised in the pro-DeSantis super PACs.

By contrast, the Trump campaign raised $4 million within 24 hours of his criminal indictment in the Stormy Daniels case earlier this year. In the first six weeks of his announcement, the former president raised $9.5 million.

Former Pennsylvania congressman Lou Barletta told the Times that people at the Four Seasons in Miami were full of enthusiasm.

“There was so much enthusiasm in that room,” Mr. Barletta said. “I had very, very few people say no to me on those calls.”

As the DeSantis campaign kicks off, he will immediately hit the road for a grueling travel schedule, hitting 12 different cities across three different states.

Supporters of DeSantis celebrated the win on social media.

Paul Roland Bois joined Breitbart News in 2021. He also directed the award-winning feature film, EXEMPLUM, which can be viewed on Tubi, Google Play, YouTube Movies, or Vimeo on Demand. Follow him on Twitter @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms. 

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.