‘This is transformative’: Early elation expressed by some Democratic donors at Harris’ potential ascension

By Fredreka Schouten, Pamela Brown and Jamie Gangel, CNN

(CNN) — Alan Kessler, a Philadelphia lawyer and longtime Democratic fundraiser, said the texts and emails began soon after news broke Sunday that President Joe Biden had withdrawn from the 2024 race and called for Vice President Kamala Harris to become his successor.

One, in particular, summed up the mood among Biden’s donors, he said.

“This is transformative,” the text from a major contributor read.

After weeks of turmoil over the future of the Democratic ticket, Kessler said the campaign donors he’s courted as a bundler for Biden’s campaign are turning their full attention to Harris and committing to work on her behalf. “They’re really excited, and they are all in,” he said.

Matt Gorman, a longtime Democratic fundraiser, told CNN, “My phone’s been ringing off the hook.”

Gorman said that while he deeply respects Biden, he feels it’s “incumbent” upon him to support the decision that’s been made and “back up Harris.”

He and fellow donors are “excited” about Harris, and he said that he’s received many calls from people who had been holding back their money, now asking where to throw their money behind, whether it’s the Democratic National Committee or specific PACs.

“The energy in the last 6 hours has been reinvigorating and inspiring,” Gorman said.

In another sign of enthusiasm: Harris raised $49.6 million in grassroots donations for her campaign since Biden endorsed her Sunday, campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt said.

Harris will need the money. Although the Biden-Harris campaign and its affiliated committees outraised former President Donald Trump’s political operation in June, newly filed campaign reports show the Trump team entered July and the general election showdown with a bigger war chest of available cash.

The Biden campaign had dramatically outspent the Trump last month, drawing down the campaign’s reserves – just as concerns grew about Biden’s poor June 27 debate performance, putting future contributions at risk.

On Sunday afternoon, the Biden campaign filed paperwork with federal election regulators, transforming itself into the “Harris for President” committee. But Harris is not yet the Democrats’ presidential nominee. It’s now up to some 4,700 delegates to decide who officially becomes the party’s standard-bearer.

Biden’s withdrawal caps weeks of uncertainty and drama.

Some Democratic donors were so alarmed by Biden’s halting appearance on the debate stage that they declared an embargo on future giving to his campaign – and in some cases vowed to withhold contributions to down-ballot Democratic candidates – until the president agreed to withdraw from the race.

On Sunday, after Biden’s announcement, Biden campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond unleashed anger at some of those big donors, saying they had “created a self-fulfilling prophecy” by declining to give money to support Biden after his debate performance.

“You can’t win without money, and then they were going to point the finger at the candidate. They were going to blame it on Biden,” Richmond said. “For a president that has accomplished so much, it was a no-win situation.”

Richmond also had this message to financial backers who had abandoned the president in recent weeks: “Now those donors need to step the f**k up.”

One former elected Democratic official who is still very active in the party said people who had cancelled their fundraising events for July and August after the debate are now putting them back on the calendar.

“Everything is back on,” the source said.

And while donations may be going up for Harris specifically, as one donor put it, the main goal is beating Trump.

“Every election is about something different. This one’s so much about anti-Donald Trump,” the donor said.

‘DEMBARGO is lifted’

“Suffice to say, the DEMBARGO is lifted,” Damon Lindelof, a Hollywood screenwriter and producer, wrote Sunday on Instagram. Lindelof was among the contributors who had called on fellow Democratic donors to stop writing campaign checks.

He wrote that he felt “profound relief, gratitude … and then for the first time, genuine EXCITEMENT for the election ahead.”

Echoing that sentiment, another big-ticket donor said there’s going to be “a massive surge of new energy” around Harris, saying this election is about beating Trump – and that he’s relieved the focus will go back to that.

Another major donor told CNN that they’re “going to go in big.”

Dick Gephardt, a former Democratic majority leader in the House, said he knows of several people who were holding back money and are now fulfilling their pledges to the party in the wake of the news Sunday.

He said he wasn’t planning to hold back his own monetary support, but that he plans to give even more in light of the switch-up.

The enthusiasm for Harris among the Democratic donor class was not universal, however.

Florida lawyer John Morgan – an ardent Biden supporter and fundraiser for the president’s reelection campaign – said he no longer plans to raise money for the White House effort because he’s not persuaded that Harris is the strongest candidate Democrats could field.

But Biden’s endorsement essentially closes the door on a more open selection process that some in the party had sought, he said.

The party would have been better served by “someone who will appear more moderate” to voters, Morgan said, ticking off Govs. Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania as among preferred options.

And he said he expects Republicans to quickly cast Harris as a “California progressive” who bungled efforts to stop illegal immigration at the southern border with Mexico, although he views that characterization as unfair.

Morgan had planned a fundraiser for the Biden campaign in Florida, but those plans had been put on hold because of the tumult unleashed by the June 27 debate . Morgan said he already had collected $1 million for the event – money that now likely will benefit Harris – but will do no more.

“Will I vote for Harris? Yes,” he said. “Will I raise money? No.”

CNN’s MJ Lee contributed to this report.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

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