Biden and Trump each top $60 million with their parties as fundraising slows in April

Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, and the DNC raised $60.5 million, the former vice president told supporters in a fundraising email. His campaign raised $43.5 million, while the DNC raised $17 million.

Trump's campaign said it and the Republican National Committee had raised $61.7 million over the month. It did not release a breakdown of how much each committee had raised.

Less than six months from November's election, Trump is off to a massive financial head start: His campaign and the RNC said they ended April with $255 million in the bank.

The Democrats did not release cash-on-hand figures Monday. Biden ended March with $26.4 million remaining in his campaign account.

The April numbers for both candidates reflect a slowdown in fundraising amid the pandemic, with the candidates unable to hold the sorts of big-dollar donor events that presidential campaigns would typically include.

The former vice president became the presumptive Democratic nominee to take on Trump when his last primary rival, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, dropped out of the race on April 8.

Biden and the DNC in late April announced a joint fundraising agreement that allows major donors to give $360,600 to the Biden Victory Fund -- a dramatic increase over the $2,800 maximum contribution to an individual candidate for the general election.

Monday's totals don't include money raised at the end of April by the joint committee, which reports its fundraising quarterly rather than monthly, a DNC spokesperson said.

Biden's campaign has largely conducted its fundraising through virtual meetings over the video conferencing app Zoom. The DNC also held 11 fundraisers over Zoom in April, the spokesperson said, and more are planned with top Democratic figures such as Hillary Clinton, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Biden's wife, Jill Biden.

In a fundraising email Monday, Biden announced the April haul, saying the average online donation to his campaign was $32.69. He did not say how much of the $60.5 million came from online donations.

"The trust you all have put in me as your presumptive nominee is humbling," Biden said in the email.

Biden had raised $18.1 million in February, and then $46.7 million in March, when he all but clinched the Democratic nomination.

The DNC had raised $32.6 million in March -- a total that included a single $18 million contribution from former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The party committee began April with $35.8 million on hand.

Trump and the Republican Party, meanwhile, had raised $212 million in the first quarter of 2020. The campaign brought in $63 million in March, compared with $86 million raised in February.

"While day-to-day life may have slowed this past month, enthusiasm and support for this President has not," RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a statement. "With their time, resources, and ultimately their vote, Americans across this country continue to put their faith in President Trump."