Yahoo Finance Where Does Your Biden Campaign Donation Go Now That He’s Dropped Out?
These past days and months leading up to Election Day 2024 have been nothing short of extraordinary. President Joe Biden’s debate performance against Trump on June 27 left some critics concerned about his ability to defeat his challenger.
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Then, just a couple of weeks later, an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally on July 13 plunged the political scene into chaos.
Fast forward to July 21 and President Joe Biden made a move that has shaken things up even more.
Biden made the decision to drop out of the race. He immediately endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the democratic nominee in a statement on X: “Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
USA Today reported that the last time an incumbent president dropped out of the race was on March 31, 1968, when President Lyndon Johnson announced to the American people that he would not be seeking reelection over dropping approval ratings and a growing divide over the Vietnam War.
Fast forward 56 years and Biden has made history in the same way. However, the Biden campaign had approximately $91 million cash on hand at the time that he dropped out of the race. Combined with funds from other Democratic organizations, the campaign had access to a total of about $240 million.
Here’s the big question: What happens to these funds?
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Harris Is Entitled To the Campaign Funds
If you’re wondering whether Vice President Kamala Harris will have full access to the Biden campaign funds, the answer is yes.
The Federal Election Commission holds the funds under both Biden and Harris’ names. Harris has the right to take over the funds fully now that Biden has stepped aside, explained Kenneth Gross — former associate general counsel for the Federal Election Commission — to AP News.
But, Republicans are up in arms about it.
Business Insider reported that Republicans may sue to stop Harris from taking Biden’s campaign cash and spot on the ballot.
However, legal experts say that the lawsuits will fail and may drag on well past the election.
“I just don’t think that there are shenanigans that are likely to work,” said Dan Weiner, an election law and campaign finance expert at the Brennan Center for Justice, to Business Insider.
Donors Can Get Refunds Only If The Campaign Agrees
The reality is that donors don’t have the right to an automatic refund if they want their money back.
Once you donate to a political campaign, you relinquish the right to those funds. This is still the case even if the candidate is switched after the donation is made. These funds could even be transferred to Democratic committees backing House and Senate candidates, or saved for use down the line.
Editor’s note on election coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on GOBankingRates.com.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Where Does Your Biden Campaign Donation Go Now That He’s Dropped Out?