Joe Biden is almost $200 million behind Trump in 2020 fundraising but Democratic strategists say they aren't worried

• Former Vice President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party are lagging far behind President Donald Trump and the GOP in 2020 fundraising.
• Biden began April with $57.2 million cash on hand, while Trump had $244 million on hand — a nearly $187 million difference.
• But Democratic strategists told Insider they're not overly concerned about the money gap, as they think Democratic donors will step up their giving in coming months and Biden won't need massive sums to make a strong general election case amid the pandemic and economic crisis.
• "Trump's bungling of the coronavirus preparation and response is a fundamental problem for his re-election that even his current financial advantage can't paper over," Ian Russell, a former deputy executive director of the DCCC, told Insider.
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Former Vice President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party are lagging far behind President Donald Trump and the GOP in 2020 fundraising.

Biden began April with $57.2 million cash on hand, while Trump started the month with $244 million on hand. And that's after Biden's biggest fundraising month ever in March, during which he raked in $46.7 million as he consolidated support in the primary and won key endorsements. Meanwhile, Trump and the Republican National Committee brought in $63 million last month.

This puts Biden almost $187 million behind Trump with about 7 months until the general election.

But Democratic strategists say money will matter less this cycle as Trump struggles to handle a national public health and economic crisis.

"Trump's bungling of the coronavirus preparation and response is a fundamental problem for his re-election that even his current financial advantage can't paper over," Ian Russell, a Democratic strategist and a former deputy executive director of the DCCC, told Insider.

Even in more normal times, money isn't necessarily the greatest indicator of electoral success. Biden managed to easily win the Democratic nomination while being significantly outraised by several of his primary opponents, most notably Sen. Bernie Sanders. And Hillary Clinton lost her 2016 presidential bid while outspending Trump.

The president and his advisers have long believed a relatively healthy economy, including historically low unemployment, would be his most powerful argument in November. During perhaps the biggest recession since the Great Depression, the president will have a hard time making an economic case for his reelection.

Russell also argued that Biden's March fundraising proves he'll draw significantly more money in the coming months as the party unites behind him. Sean McElwee, a progressive pollster and co-founder of Data for Progress, agreed.

"Democratic donors hate Trump. Now that there is a nominee, they're going to open their wallets and we'll see that gap close," McElwee told Insider.

The Democratic party has time to rally around Biden since he emerged as the presumptive nominee relatively early with Sanders' exit on April 8.

But the former veep's donations dropped off drastically in the second half of March when the economy began to shut down amid the pandemic. While Biden raised about $27 million during the first two weeks of the month, he took in just $8.5 million in the latter half of March, according to the campaign's FEC report.

The presumptive Democratic nominee said that 70% of his March donations came from online donors and the average gift was $40. Some of his supporters are beginning to urge Biden to focus on expanding his grassroots donor base.

Sanders dominated grassroots fundraising during the primary, but while the Vermont lawmaker gave Biden a strong endorsement last week, he hasn't yet committed to fundraising for him. (Sanders is using his extensive email list to fundraise for progressive allies in Congress, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, and Ilhan Omar.)

While Biden is transitioning to a fully digital campaign operation and has held more than a dozen online fundraising events in recent weeks, the Trump campaign recently announced the president would go back to holding live campaign rallies before the election. This comes as experts warn large gatherings might not be possible until next year.

Both Biden and Trump are backed by a host of billionaire donors who send their money to Super PACs that are able to spend as much money as they'd like on behalf of their chosen candidates. The candidates have both found support on Wall Street and among ultra-rich real estate developers. Biden has also received significant financial support from several major labor unions.

Biden has alliances with at least three major Super PACs — Priorities USA, American Bridge 21st Century, and Unite the Country, while Trump gets significant support from America First Action.

Jesse Ferguson, a Democratic strategist and former spokesman for Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign, argued that Trump's strong alliance with corporate America, including donations from executives who benefited from his 2017 tax cuts, could hurt his appeal among swing voters.

"Whether it was from corporate CEOs who got tax breaks and contracts from Trump or outside support from foreign dictators who are his allies, no Democrat should expect to match the resources Trump will have in this campaign," Ferguson said.

He added, "The problem for Trump is that his big money just proves to people that he's being rewarded for doing the wrong things. If there wasn't enough money to sell people on buying New Coke, there's definitely not enough to sell people on buying arsenic."

Intelligence officials warned Congress earlier this year that the Russian government is again interfering in the presidential election to help Trump win re-election. And on Tuesday, the Republican-controlled Senate Intelligence Committee released the fourth portion of their report confirming US intelligence agencies' determination that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to help Trump and hurt Clinton.