Obama Pulls in More than $3 Million for Biden’s Campaign at Illinois Fundraiser

Former President Barack Obama pulled in more than three million dollars from Chicago’s social elite at a virtual fundraiser hosted for Joe Biden on Thursday.

The virtual event, Obama’s second in less than a month, was centered around a discussion between the former commander in chief and Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-IL) on how America would benefit from a Biden White House, according to Politico’s Illinois Playbook.

In attendance were some of Chicago’s financial and business elite, including Cubs co-owner Laura Ricketts and Penny Pritzker—Obama’s former secretary of commerce and the sister of the current Illinois governor. Also in attendance was Leslie Bluhm, the daughter of casino magnate and Biden mega-donor, Neil Bluhm.

The fundraiser was held only hours after the former vice president released his proposal for rebuilding the economy in the wake of the COVID19 pandemic, As such, Obama and Pritzker focused much of their remarks on how a Biden administration would benefit working and middle-class Americans.

Overall, the event brought in more than three million dollars for the presumptive Democrat nominee’s campaign, with contribution levels ranging from $50,000 to $250,000. It comes only days after Obama appeared alongside Biden, his one-time running mate, at a virtual fundraiser in late-June. That event, though, raised significantly more than the former president’s effort on Thursday, bringing in $7.6 million from more than 175,000 contributors.

The hefty sum boosted the former vice president’s combined June fundraising total, including donations to the Democratic National Committee, to approximately $141 million in June.

Obama’s return to the fundraising circuit, even if only in a virtual capacity as of now, signals that the former commander in chief will play an active role in the 2020 general election.