Joe Biden raised $21.5 million in the 2nd quarter, but the Democratic frontrunner trails upstart Pete Buttigieg by more than $3 million

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Joe Biden raised $21.5 million in the 2nd quarter, but the Democratic frontrunner trails upstart Pete Buttigieg by more than $3 million

Buttigieg Biden

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg (L) and former Vice President Joe Biden talk during the second night of the first Democratic presidential debate on June 27, 2019 in Miami, Florida.

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  • Joe Biden, the Democratic frontrunner has raised $21.5 million since April in his pursuit of the presidency, the second highest of any Democrat.
  • Biden trails South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg by more than $3 million.
  • Buttigieg has raised $24.8 million in the second quarter of 2019, according to campaign fundraising figures.
  • Biden's campaign started weeks later than Buttigieg's, and his team said the candidate raised more per day than any of his rivals.
  • Buttigieg was virtually unknown before launching his candidacy, but has emerged as of one of the leading Democrats in the 2020 campaign.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, who leads most polls of Democratic president candidates, has raised a huge $21.5 million for his campaign since launching his candidacy in April.

But he trails North Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who was virtually unknown on the national stage before launching his candidacy earlier in the year, whose campaign raised $24.8 million in the second quarter.

Read more: Trump's 2020 campaign raked in a whopping $105 million in the second quarter

Biden, who launched his candidacy three weeks after Buttigieg, raised 436,000 donations from 256,000 donors, with the average donation around $49.

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In an email to supporters, Biden's campaign said it "raised more per day than any other presidential campaign."

The news of Biden's fundraising follows a torrid week for the former VP. In a lackluster performance in the first Democratic primary debate last Thursday was confronted by Sen. Kamala Harris about his warm relationship with segregationist senators.

Harris' questioning saw Biden's support dip among African Americans, according to a Reuters poll.

Presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at the Rainbow Coalition Annual Conference at CTU headquarters in Chicago on Friday, June 28, 2019. (Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune/TNS via Getty Images)

Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune/TNS via Getty Images

Former Vice President Joe Biden.

Read more: Bernie Sanders was outraised by Mayor Pete Buttigieg by almost $7 million in the second quarter

Buttigieg's campaign said Monday it had received donations from all 50 states, with an average donation of $47.

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"Pete has proved why he is a top-tier candidate for the nomination," campaign manager Mike Schmuhl wrote in an email to supporters Monday.

"From town halls on MSNBC, CNN, and FOX News to last week's debate, he's shown the country what I've known for a long time: Pete is the best person to bring a new generation of leadership to Washington."

Bernie Sanders was the third big name Democrat whose campaign released its fundraising figures this week, with the Vermont senator's campaign saying it raised $18 million in the second quarter.

The fundraising tallies for the surging campaigns of Harris and Sen. Elizabeth Warren have yet to be released and hotly anticipated in Washington.

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