Bloomberg campaign transfers $18 million to DNC
The now-defunct presidential campaign for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is transferring its $18 million in funds to the Democratic National Committee (DNC). The campaign also donated several former field offices to state parties.
The transfer does not qualify as a donation, as it is well beyond the $35,500 limit of what is allowed to a national party committee. Although the move is not illegal, it is possible due to the loophole that allows funds greater than the limit to be transferred instead of donated.
"Mike Bloomberg entered this race to ensure Democrats win - keeping the House blue, flipping the Senate, winning key state and local races, and taking back the White House - and this commitment through November helps do exactly that. By supporting the Democratic Party, we look forward to November and taking on our unified goal of beating Donald Trump," the campaign said in a memo to DNC Chair Tom Perez.
Perez said in a statement that "Bloomberg and his team are making good on their commitment to beating Donald Trump."
"This will help us invest in more organizers across the country to elect the next president and help Democrats win up and down the ballot," Perez said.
Bloomberg dropped out of the presidential race earlier this month and immediately endorsed Biden. Bloomberg, a billionaire who self-funded his campaign, spent half a billion dollars on campaign advertisements. Kate Bedingfield, the communications director for the Biden campaign, praised the Bloomberg campaign's action in a statement.
"The Democratic Party stands united and fully committed to defeating the most dangerous president in modern history, and we welcome the announcement of Mayor Bloomberg's extraordinary investment to ensure that happens," Bedingfield said. "We need to compete with the war chest that Donald Trump, the RNC, and their right-wing allies have amassed, and this will go a long way in ensuring that we can fund the grassroots efforts in key battleground states that will be necessary to win this November."