The Harris campaign burned through $1.5 billion in a failed bid to send the vice president to the White House, and now Democrats are searching for answers after the stunning defeat.
Kamala Harris’s 15-week operation splashed out on celebrity concerts, social media influencers, an Oprah town hall event, and ramped up its advertising campaign and ground game at an average cost of roughly $100 million a week, according to The New York Times.
The biggest expense, according to the outlet, was the campaign’s advertising spend – including producing television and digital ads – which amounted to $494 million between July 21 and October 16.
Other costs included $2.5 million for three digital agencies that worked with online influencers and $900,000 to advertise on the Las Vegas Sphere venue, according to officials who spoke to theTimes.
It has provoked the Democratic National Committee’s financial chair to “push for an introspective study and analysis” of how the campaign racked up a total spend of $1.5 billion.
In a note sent to fundraisers on Friday, Chris Korge said that losing all seven battleground states had “shocked us all.”
“I will absolutely push for an introspective study and analysis of the campaign, its structure, its messaging, all communication platforms and budgeting,” Korge wrote.
The pricey Oprah town hall event in September is one of the expenses that raised eyebrows and Winfrey was forced to clarify that she did not receive a personal fee.
Federal Election Commission filings confirm that the Harris campaign sent Winfrey’s Harpo Productions two $500,000 payments on October 15.
The Times reports that the total cost of the event was actually closer to $2.5 million.
“I was not paid a dime,” Winfrey clarified on Instagram. “For the live-streaming event in September, my production company Harpo was asked to bring in set design, lights, cameras, crew, producers and every other item necessary (including the benches and the chairs we sat on) to put on a live production.”
“I did not take any personal fee,” Winfrey added. “However, the people who worked on that production needed to be paid. And were. End of story.”
The election eve rallies in the swing states also racked up a hefty bill, despite singers themselves not receiving payment. The performances, including Jon Bon Jovi in Detroit, Katy Perry in Pittsburgh, Lady Gaga in Philadelphia, James Taylor in North Carolina, and Christina Aguilera in Nevada, reportedly topped $10 million.
The campaign’s chief financial officer, Patrick Stauffer, said in a statement to the Times that there were “no outstanding debts or overdue bills” as of Election Day and that “there will be no debt” on the next DNC or Harris for President campaign filings in December.
Democrats have found themselves embroiled in a blame game following Donald Trump’s victory and questions over the use of campaign funds persist.
“We spent money in stupid ways because we had a really bad strategy,” a former consultant to the DNC told Puck, citing money sent to fund Representative Colin Allred’s failed challenge against Texas Senator Ted Cruz, as well as money directed to help in Iowa, a historically Republican state.
“Instead of owning any mistakes, or being transparent about the voter data and strategies that were so obviously wrong, they shut off their Twitter account and are patting each other on the back,” the former consultant said. “We dug out of a deep hole but not enough.”
A member of Joe Biden’s staff was less forbearing: “How did you spend $1 billion and not win? What the f***?” they told Axios.
