Biden and Democratic Party organizations raised $53 million in February

President Joe Biden’s campaign and its connected fundraising organizations raised $53 million in February, the campaign announced on Sunday, giving them a collective $155 million in the bank at the end of last month.

That’s a $25 million increase over the combined cash on hand for the Biden campaign, the Democratic National Committee and Democratic state parties at the end of January. And it came as Biden and former President Donald Trump clinched their party nominations and kicked off the general election.

In statement, the campaign said February was its strongest grassroots fundraising month since its launch in April of last year. The joint campaign effort pointed to big moments in the month as drivers for large cash hauls, including an email to donors from first lady Jill Biden.

Jill Biden was closely involved in crafting an email that went out after the release of special counsel Robert Hur’s report on Biden’s handling of classified documents after his vice presidency. Hur concluded that no charges should be filed against the president. But the White House went after Hur, accusing him of making unnecessary comments about Biden’s age and memory.

Jill Biden’s campaign message in defense of her husband generated $853,000 in February, the campaign said.

“We’re proud of the record-breaking fundraising machine we’ve built that is going toward reaching the voters about the stakes of this election,” campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said in a statement. She added that the money would help expand the campaign’s state-level operations, invest in paid media and pay for Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and their spouses to campaign across the country.

The campaign also touted $2 million from small-dollar contributors