WASHINGTON, July 21 — US President Donald Trump's re-election campaign ramped up expenditure in June as the presidential race intensified, spending more than US$50 million (RM213 million) — about twice the amount spent the month before.

Trump's Democratic opponent in the November 3 general election, Joe Biden, spent considerably less — about US$37 million. The two campaigns finished the month with roughly the same amount of money in the bank — around US$110 million each, according to disclosures filed yesterday with the Federal Election Commission.

Biden raised more money than Trump in June, US$63.4 million to US$55.2 million.

Trump's campaign spent more than US$41 million on television, digital and other advertisements as public opinion polls showed Biden increasingly building a significant lead, with voters expressing disapproval over Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic and protests over racial injustice.

Those advertisements took shots at Biden over his age, 77, and his record on China. But the Democrat's lead has steadily grown even as Trump increased his spending.

Biden led Trump among registered voters by 10 percentage points in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted July 14-15.

While Trump's campaign bought significant television air time across the country, Biden only launched his first major advertising blitz in the second half of June.

Still, Biden's campaign dramatically increased his digital advertising spending in June to nearly US$17 million from about US$175,000 the month before.

Kevin Madden, a top aide to Republican Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign, said Trump's ad juggernaut was having a hard time breaking through to voters.

"TV advertising is having a minimal effect on the state of the race right now,” Madden said. "There aren't many ads that are going to alter voter perceptions when you have an economic crisis strapped to the back of a health care crisis impacting people's lives every day.” — Reuters