About 150 of the top Democratic Party contributors will be honored in Washington on Friday evening by President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and their spouses as they lay the groundwork for their reelection campaign, which is anticipated to require well over $1 billion in donations.
The summit is not a fundraiser, and it was unclear how many of those in attendance had already contributed to Biden’s campaign. It is instead being billed as a strategy session for high-dollar donors and fundraisers who will use their networks to help fund Biden’s campaign over the next 18 months.
In addition to a dinner on Friday night, top Biden advisers and his campaign co-chairs will brief attendees on the campaign’s plan for the 2024 election, which is to “fund winning campaigns from the top of the ticket on down,” the campaign said.
A co-chair of Biden’s campaign, Jeffrey Katzenberg, claimed that since the former vice president entered the race once more, “the dam has burst and people are super excited and on board.” The beginning of the beginning is where we are. It’s not a sprint; it’s a marathon. And we are in the fortunate position of being committed to running for office and winning in November 2024, on which all of our efforts and resources are concentrated.
According to the campaign, some Democratic lawmakers, including governors who have proven to be prolific party fundraisers — Wes Moore of Maryland, Phil Murphy of New Jersey, and Gavin Newsom of California — are expected to attend the event at the swanky Salamander Hotel in Washington.
The weekend summit is Biden’s first official in-person campaign event since announcing his candidacy on Tuesday. According to a person familiar with the matter who spoke anonymously to discuss internal dynamics, the campaign is slowly taking shape out of spare office space at the Democratic National Committee before moving to Wilmington, Delaware, the president’s hometown.
And campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez has yet to begin because she is still in the process of leaving her position as White House director of intergovernmental affairs.
Biden held a virtual call with grassroots supporters from the White House residence on Thursday night, and his campaign has sent out dozens of fundraising emails to supporters, who the campaign says are just as important as large donors. During the 2022 midterm election cycle, grassroots donors accounted for more than 60% of the DNC’s fundraising.
“One of Joe Biden’s hallmarks is that he has always enjoyed grassroots support, and it has always been an essential ingredient (of his campaigns),” Katzenberg said. “It would be a mistake to place too much emphasis on the high end and the bundlers would be a mistake.”
Biden’s remarks are expected to touch on themes central to his campaign, ranging from his accomplishments in office to “MAGA Republicans” who he claims are fighting “to take away women’s right to choose, ban books, and gut Social Security and Medicare,” according to the campaign.
According to a person familiar with the event who was not authorized to speak publicly about it, invitees all contributed at least $1 million to Biden’s 2020 campaign. Because invitations for the event were only sent out late last week, some donors who fit that description were not expected to attend due to scheduling conflicts.
Some donors have complained about Biden’s White House’s inconsistent outreach, and the weekend summit was an attempt to ease tensions as the reelection campaign gets underway.
Katzenberg said he is “absolutely confident” the campaign will be able to surpass the nearly $1.1 billion raised for Biden’s 2020 effort. Biden’s campaign has not disclosed how much money it has raised since he officially declared his candidacy on Tuesday morning.
