By Jason Lange
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Donald Trump fell further behind President Joe Biden last month in fundraising ahead of the November presidential election after spending more money on ads and expenses than it received from donors, according to financial disclosures filed on Tuesday.
Trump's cash holdings fell to just over $30 million at the close of last month as he waged successful campaigns for Republican primary contests in Iowa and New Hampshire, down from around $33 million a month earlier, his campaign said in a report to the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
Biden, who is facing a less competitive process for his Democratic Party's nomination, said in a separate disclosure to the FEC that his campaign ended January with about $56 million in cash, up from $46 million in December.
Trump is closing in on the Republican nomination to face Biden but he has trailed the incumbent in fundraising while also spending aggressively on primary contests.
Trump's campaign said it raised $8.8 million in January and spent more than $11 million, with outlays including more than $5 million on ads and mailings as he easily won his party's first presidential nomination contests.
Biden's campaign reported raising more than $15 million last month while spending under $6 million. When adding together his campaign accounts with those of his Democratic Party allies, Biden's re-election effort had $130 million in cash, his campaign said earlier on Tuesday.
To be sure, Trump has shown he can win elections when rivals have outspent him, as he defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Trump and Biden are neck-and-neck in many national public opinion polls and a close race in November is expected.
Trump's remaining rival for the Republican nomination, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, outraised him last month by taking in more than $11 million, according to a separate disclosure from her campaign.
Still, Trump is expected to best her in her home state's Republican primary on Saturday.
LEGAL EXPENSES
Separately, the biggest super PAC supporting Trump, known as MAGA Inc, reported raising $7 million last month, enough to offset the $5 million refund it issued to a separate Trump political action committee (PAC) that is paying the candidate's legal expenses as he battles dozens of criminal charges.
The Trump group that received the money, Save America, reported spending close to $3 million on legal expenses during the month, adding to the more than $47 million it spent last year on legal expenses.
Most of MAGA Inc's fundraising in January came from a $5 million contribution from Timothy Mellon, heir to the Mellon banking fortune, who is also funding a super PAC backing independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
By comparison, the SFA Fund, a super PAC supporting Haley's campaign, reported taking in $12 million, including contributions of more than $2 million following her loss to Trump in the Jan. 24 New Hampshire primary.