/https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5fc97be984ab774e05ff090c/0x0.jpg?cropX1=0&cropX2=3960&cropY1=596&cropY2=2823&w=1200&resize=1200,675&ssl=1 "Trump Has Raised 7.5 Million Since Election Day – Not All Will Go To Legal Efforts")
Topline
The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee announced Thursday that they raised $207.5 million since election day thanks to Trump’s continued refusal to concede and unproven claims of voter fraud – though they said some of the money would go to future elections rather than contesting 2020.
TOPSHOT – US President Donald Trump dances after speaking during a Make America Great Again rally at … [+]
AFP via Getty Images
Key Facts
The Trump campaign and the GOP have barraged supporters with hundreds of emails and text messages casting the presidential election as still competitive despite Democrat Joe Biden’s clear win, urging them to fund Trump’s efforts to overcome the results.
RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel acknowledged in a statement that the massive haul reflects that, “The American people know what’s at stake,” adding, “we’ve been fighting tooth and nail to uphold election integrity across the country.”
But McDaniel also noted that the money would be spent on the Senate runoff in Georgia, which some of Trump’s more fervent supporters have called to boycott out of a belief that GOP Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue haven’t done enough to support Trump’s fraud claims and that their votes won’t be fairly counted.
Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien said the haul shows Trump “remains the leader and source of energy for the Republican party” and that his supporters are “dedicated to fighting for the rightful legal outcome of the 2020 general election.”
But like McDaniel, Stepien made no secret that the money – largely raised through claims 2020 is still winnable – would be used for future election fraud efforts and on the 2022 House and Senate races.
Key Background
Republicans have struggled to balance Trump’s refusal to concede the election with their own political interests in recent weeks. While most GOP officials have remained silent on the election or sided with Trump – with a handful splintering off and acknowledging Biden – many have still conceded Trump is unlikely to win and said the GOP’s focus should turn to Georgia. Other, more conspiratorial Trump supporters have argued the presidential election could come first and that Georgia is a lower priority.
Chief Critic
Outgoing Rep. Denver Riggleman (R-Va.) told Forbes in an interview that Trump’s refusal to concede is a “massive grift” and that Republicans supporting him are “just money-making” for 2022 and 2024, calling the effort “completely unethical.”
Tangent
Many Republicans have been caught inadvertently acknowledging the presidential election result while attempting to boost Loeffler and Perdue. A text message from NRSC, addressed from Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr., told supporters that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer “takes control” if Republicans lose Georgia – tacit recognition that Kamala Harris is vice-president election and thus could serve as Senate tie breaker if Democrats win the runoffs and get to 50 Senate seats.
Big Number
53%. That’s the share of Republican voters in a Politico/Morning Consult poll released two weeks after the election who said they believe the presidential election results in Georgia – which Biden won by about 12,500 votes – were somewhat or very unreliable. Just 7% of Democratic voters said the same.
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