US election: Where did Kamala Harris' campaign money of $1 billion go?

Outgoing United States (US) Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris suffered a defeat in the November 5 presidential election against Republican Donald Trump. Harris stepped into the White House race after outgoing President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal on July 21.

Speaking to the news agency Reuters earlier this month,  Emory University professor Andra Gillespie said that Harris faced a  "gargantuan task", having only 100 days to put together a national campaign after stepping in as the Democratic nominee.

Gillespie pointed out that Harris was "unknown" compared to President-elect Donald Trump, and struggled to distance herself from the unpopular Biden administration.

A few things to know about Harris' campaign

Harris' campaign raised a whopping $1 billion for the White House race. She was fighting for a New Way Forward that would protect fundamental rights, strengthen democracy, and provide opportunities for every person to get ahead. 

Also read | US election 2024 analysis: How Trump won against Harris - 15 things his campaign got right

Harris also made it clear that building up the middle class would be the ultimate goal of her presidency. She will increase the economic security of all Americans and as President, she will fight to cut taxes. 

So, where did the campaign money go?

With Democratic Party supporters still recovering from the election loss to Trump, a question is being asked where did the billion dollars raised by Harris' campaign go?

A report by The Times on Saturday (Nov 16) said that of the total campaign money raised, $15 million was spent on slick celebrity endorsements, over $4 million on influencer marketing and what is estimated at hundreds of thousands of dollars to put Harris’s face on the Las Vegas Sphere.

However, in the end, the money was not enough.

The Times report said that despite the $1 billion pot, Harris and Tim Walz's campaign finished the race more than $20 million in debt, the team still sending chirpy texts from the campaign asking for more cash.

Recently, John Hopkins University said that the largest portion of the campaign money went on media — television, radio, billboards and newspaper advertising — totalling $690 million.

This included displaying her face across the Las Vegas Sphere, understood to cost $450,000 a day, and her ad being displayed intermittently from October 29 until election day.

Harris' campaign spent far more than that of Trump

The Times report also said that Harris' campaign spent far more money than that of Trump. According to the non-profit research group, OpenSecrets, president-elect Trump’s official campaign spent $345 million.

Speaking to the publication, Jimmy Keady, a former Republican staffer in the House and now a strategist, said that Trump was very strategic in spending money on talking about the issues that people cared about.

"It doesn’t matter how much money you spend if your message isn’t right. Kamala missed the mark,” Keady added. 

(With inputs from agencies)