US's DeSantis Raises $8.2Mln In 24 Hours After Announcing Presidential Bid - Reports

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 26th May, 2023) Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has raised a total of $8.2 million in the first 24 hours after announcing his presidential bid, with $1 million received in just an hour, The New York Times reported, citing DeSantis's campaign.

The governor's campaign started on Wednesday evening with a glitch on Twitter while posting the announcement, but it did not put off donors from financing his intense travel schedule, which includes 12 cities in three US states next week, the report said.

Incumbent US President Joe Biden raised only $6.3 million over his first 24 hours as a candidate in 2019, the report also said.

It added that former US leader Donald Trump received about $9.

5 million in the first six weeks of his re-election campaign, which he announced in November 2022.

On Wednesday, DeSantis said he was running for president "to lead our great American comeback," and that the US must strengthen security on the country's border with Mexico and stop millions of illegal immigrants from pouring into the country.

DeSantis will be Trump's top challenger in the race to become the Republican nominee in the presidential election. However, Trump currently leads DeSantis by some 37 points among Republican voters, according to political analysis website Real Clear politics.