Millions in Harris campaign expenses still weigh on the DNC
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Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Democrats are still paying for Kamala Harris' loss to Donald Trump last year — literally.
- The Democratic National Committee has paid more than $15 million toward Harris 2024 campaign expenses in the first six months of 2025.
Why it matters: The continued payments and lackluster fundraising left the DNC with $65 million less cash on hand than the Republican National Committee at the end of July.
- The DNC had just $15 million and the RNC — helped along by Trump's and Vice President Vance's fundraising — had $80 million.
State of play: The financial woes have resulted in Democrats continuing to point fingers at each other nearly 10 months after last November's election.
- Some donors and senior Democrats are angry that Harris' campaign spent an unprecedented $1.5 billion during her 15-week run and still lost all seven swing states.
- Some donors have grown reluctant to give the DNC more money even as the party is trying to pivot to the 2026 midterms.
The intrigue: Democrats have asked Harris and her team to hold more fundraisers and call more donors to solicit contributions to help pay off the expenses, but her allies believe she's done her part.
- Harris has allowed the DNC to continue using her email list to help raise money and has held a few small fundraising events. But the total money raised from the events has been disappointing, according to two people familiar with the matter.
What they're saying: "The vice president has collaborated closely with the DNC to manage campaign expenses and expand our base of grassroots donors. She remains fully committed to strengthening the party and helping return Democrats to power," Jen O'Malley Dillon, who chaired Harris' campaign and is still involved, told Axios.
- The DNC declined to comment.
Zoom in: On behalf of Harris, the DNC has paid for the following items during the past six months:
- $548,050 to the charter flight company Executive Fliteways Inc.
- $2.125 million to the media production firm Assembly House LLC.
- $237,201 to the law firm Covington & Burling.
The other side: Some Harris allies believe other Democrats are pointing fingers at the former vice president to try to deflect blame from the new DNC chair, Ken Martin.
- They argue Martin hasn't focused enough on fundraising as he has bolstered his public profile at events across the country and in media interviews.
- It's also been standard practice for the DNC to step in financially after a campaign — win or lose.
- Barack Obama left the DNC in worse shape after his 2012 reelection, and the debt wasn't settled until 2015. Hillary Clinton, the party's 2016 presidential nominee, later would say the DNC wasn't strong enough for that election.
Flashback: Democrats are frustrated by the continued Harris payments in part because her campaign's leadership had said the financial situation was in order.
- "As of Election Day, there were no outstanding debts or bills overdue, and there will be no debt on either the DNC or [the Harris for President committee] report for post general report," Patrick Stauffer, the campaign's chief financial officer, told reporters last November as Democrats scrutinized campaign payments.
- His statement was true, but several million dollars' worth of bills would continue to roll in during the following months and the full level of expenses wasn't clear at the time.
- Some of the bills ended up being more than expected. Harris' campaign also was surprised that the race was called on election night — it had expected to raise more money as votes were being counted.
- Stauffer declined to comment.
