Behind Trump's campaign cash crunch: Small-dollar donor fatigue, major donor hesitation

• Former President Donald Trump is facing two major fundraising problems: A shortage of big money interest and a drop in small-dollar donor support.
• The drop in Trump's small-dollar contributors could be a significant obstacle, as the former president seeks to cobble together a 2024 war chest.
• Small-dollar donors are critical to Trump's ability to raise enough money to fund his presidential campaign.

Donald Trump's reelection campaign has begun to see see warning signs that the small-dollar donors who fueled Trump's last run for the White House have slowed down donations to the former president in 2024, according to people familiar with the matter.

Since late last year, members of Trump's team have been warned by Republican Party advisers that their small-dollar donor base could be shrinking, said the sources, who were granted anonymity to discuss internal campaign discussions.

Some have even been told there may not be much that the former president or his campaign can do to win these donors back, these people explained.

The drop in Trump's small-dollar contributors could be significant obstacle as the former president faces a well funded incumbent president, Democrat Joe Biden.

Evidence from earlier in the 2024 election cycle already hinted at an erosion of Trump's small-dollar donor base, made up of donations of $200 or less.

In 2023, Trump's reelection campaign raised 62.5% less money from small-dollar donors than it did in 2019, the year before the last presidential election.

In January of this year, Trump's campaign reported raising around $3 million from small-dollar donors, according to data from OpenSecrets.

This may sound like a lot of money, but consider that Biden's political operation raised nearly $2 million