Trump and the Republican Party say they raised more than $65.6 million in March

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump and the Republican Party said Wednesday that they raised more than $65.6 million in March as the former president became the presumptive nominee and installed new party leadership.

Trump and the Republican National Committee closed out the month with $93.1 million in their campaign accounts, a significant increase as they try to catch up to the fundraising of President Joe Biden and the Democrats.

“Our campaign, working together with the RNC, has been steadily ramping up our fundraising efforts, and our March numbers are a testament to the overwhelming support for President Trump by voters all across the spectrum,” Susie Wiles, a senior advisor to Trump’s campaign, said in a statement. “Republicans may not be beneficiaries of the self interested largess from Hollywood and Silicon Valley elites, but President Trump is proud to be supported by donations from voters who are the backbone of this nation, which will fuel Republicans up and down the ballot.”

Biden and the Democratic National Committee have not released fundraising numbers for March, but their political operation said they brought in $53 million in Febrary and closed that month with $155 million cash on hand. Last week, Biden held a fundraiser in New York City with former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, which the campaign said raised a record $26 million.

Biden has been fundraising jointly with his party since he launched his reelection campaign, while Trump first had to clear a field of challengers.

“Donald Trump spent his first month as the presumptive Republican nominee holed up in a back room at Mar-a-Lago with billionaire special interests while he continues to struggle with the kind of grassroots donors who are powering our campaign,” said Biden campaign spokesman Ammar Moussa, referring to Trump’s Florida residence. “Trump is spending what money he does have on everything but reaching out to the voters -– and it’s obvious he doesn’t have the infrastructure, the donor base or the broad appeal to win this election.”

Before merging with the RNC, Trump’s campaign and his political action committee Save America, two key parts of his political operation, raised only $15.9 million in February and ended the month with more than $37 million on hand. Save America has been paying the bulk of Trump’s legal bills in his various court cases, including four criminal cases.

Trump put in new leaders at the RNC last month, including daughter-in-law Lara Trump, as his last primary challenger, Nikki Haley, dropped out. He also began fundraising with the party, which allows the joint operation to utilize higher contribution limits. A candidate can accept a maximum donation of $3,300, but a joint fundraising agreement allows a donor to sign a check for just over $800,000.

“President Donald J. Trump has again created a fundraising juggernaut among Republicans. While he has been the presumptive nominee for the Republican Party for less than a month, the RNC and Trump campaign are one unified operation and focused on victory,” said the new RNC chairman, Michael Whatley.

Trump is set to hold a high-dollar fundraiser Saturday in Palm Beach, Florida. The campaign aims to raise $33 million, topping the Biden event.

Trump’s new fundraising agreement with the RNC directs donations so that the maximum is first given to his campaign and Save America before the RNC and state parties get a cut. Donors to the Palm Beach event who give the suggested $814,600 per person as a “chairman” contributor or $250,000 per person will only have $5,000 of their donation go to Save America, sending hundreds of thousands of dollars to the party committee.