This photo combination features former President Donald Trump on the left and President Joe Biden on the right. (AP Photo/File)
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will both head to the City of Angels in June to use an ATM known for being part of Southern California's wealthy and influential families.
Trump will attend a fundraiser in Beverly Hills on Friday, June 7, and will be among the first to arrive, according to the invitation, with tickets ranging from $5,000 to $250,000. He will then head south to a Newport Beach fundraiser hosted by virtual reality entrepreneur Palmer Lackey on Saturday, June 8th.
Biden will headline a star-studded fundraiser next weekend at the Peacock Theater in downtown Los Angeles, with speakers including George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Barack Obama, NBC reports. It's planned. Two Oscar-winning actors will also support the campaign by putting their names on text messages and email appeals to voters.
President Trump has largely stayed away from Los Angeles during his campaign so far, but both Biden and Biden are expected to visit the Southland more frequently as fundraising efforts ramp up.
“While we tend to think of California as a 'blue' state in terms of votes, California is actually a 'green' state for presidential candidates,” said Matthew Beckman, a political science professor at the University of California, Irvine. state,” he says. “The number of wealthy donors has made California an early and frequent bipartisan destination.”
Pepperdine political science professor Joel Fox said he's not particularly interested in what happens within the event, where both candidates predictably raise big bucks. Rather, he is interested in the public's reaction to the visit.
“Will pro-Palestinian protesters come forward, could that be a harbinger of what the Biden team could face at the Democratic convention? And if Trump gets involved? “Will there be a protest in front of Trump's fundraisers, whether it's about a lawsuit or the Israel-Gaza dispute?” he said.
“I think it’s not the internal people who are important in this fundraiser, but the external people.”
President Trump is also expected to frequently visit Orange County, a wealthy Republican stronghold.
Matt Jarvis, an associate professor of political science at California State University, Fullerton, said the 47th Congressional District, a wealthy coastal area that includes Newport Beach, is one of the nation's top fundraising areas for Republicans. It is said to be one.
“Even though California is a foregone conclusion, we are an ATM for a national campaign,” he said. “And even though Orange County is much more purple than it used to be, it’s still a place where Republicans come to raise money.”
Trump raised more than $92.1 million in California in 2020. The Newport Beach ZIP code 92660, where Lackey held a fundraising event at his Lidore Island home in October of that year, was among the top 45 ZIP codes in the country where he received the most money. According to the data. So far in the 2024 election cycle, Trump has raised more than $16.9 million in the Golden State.
“When the president comes here, the excitement just goes up,” said Huntington Beach City Councilman Tony Strickland, who heads the Trump campaign in Orange County. “Many volunteers are very motivated and that rubs off on people running at all levels.”
That doesn't mean Trump isn't effectively raising money in other parts of the state, Strickland added. The former president has a strong support base in Beverly Hills, where he plans to stay the day before heading to Newport Beach.
In fact, real estate billionaire Jeffrey Palmer, one of President Trump's biggest donors, lives in Beverly Hills' 90210 zip code, which was and still is the most populated zip code in the country. is one of dozens of postal codes raising funds for the. Mr. Trump. Palmer has donated more than $2 million to the Trump campaign and super PACs so far in the current election cycle, according to campaign finance reports.
On a national scale, Biden currently has a clear fundraising advantage. His campaign reported revenue of $187 million in the first quarter of 2024, nearly double the $93 million reported by the Trump campaign.
This puts it in a good position to dominate the airwaves in key battleground states such as Nevada, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Arizona.
“The fact that the Biden campaign has already reserved $30 million in advertising means that it is getting the ads at a significant discount compared to September prices, and President Trump is not making any acquisitions. It's probably going to be 1.5 times more expensive once we start,''' said Michael Trujillo, a veteran Democratic elections consultant. “As a smart businessman, he's buying high, while Joe Biden is buying low.”
This is an advantage Biden desperately needs, as the recent Emerson College/The Hill battleground state poll shows him leading Trump in all seven battleground states.
Currently, Trump's legal battles are draining his military funds and campaign time. Nevertheless, there are signs that the funding gap is closing for him.
He raised a record $50.5 million at a Palm Beach fundraiser in April, bringing his estimated earnings to $76 million for the month, his campaign reported.
“Trump's campaign will be bogged down by the court mandate, at least in the short term,” Beckman said. “But as spring turns to summer, the campaign heats up, and President Trump will likely be as aggressive as ever in fundraising.”
Another advantage Biden currently has is the support of major celebrities and former presidents. Bill Clinton and Obama headlined a fundraiser for Biden in New York in March, and Obama is expected to continue promoting the former vice president into November.
Meanwhile, Trump has received no campaign support from the former Republican president.
In 2020, Biden received support from many American celebrities, including Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lopez, Brad Pitt, and Leonardo DiCaprio. And with an upcoming George Clooney and Julia Roberts event in Los Angeles, he's hoping to use star power to his advantage once again.
With his approval rating still hovering around 38%, there is currently a limit to how many prominent friends can support Biden.
“Political science research shows that presidential elections tend to influence national conditions, especially economic conditions,” Beckman said. “Both candidates will be well known, millions of dollars here and there won't affect them, and celebrity events and endorsements won't change.”
And ultimately, there are limits to your ability to raise funds.
“The American people know who these people are, they know their track record, they know where they stand,” Fox said. “I think the vote will come down to whether you want a Biden approach to the presidency or a Trump approach.”
“I don't think money is the deciding factor.”
