Washington – Sen. Barack Obama reported Sunday raising at least $32.5 million for his presidential campaign from April through June, a record for a Democratic candidate.
That is about $5 million more than what Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Obama’s main Democratic rival, has said she would raise for the reporting period that ended Saturday.
At least $31 million of Obama’s total is for party primaries, according to campaign aides. That figure could further distance Obama from Clinton, whose fundraising has included significant sums of money eligible only for the general election.
The first-term senator from Illinois received donations from more than 154,000 individual contributors and through the first half of the year had 258,000 donors, an extraordinary figure at this stage of the campaign. Obama raised $25.7 million in the first three months of the year.
“Together, we have built the largest grass-roots campaign in history for this stage of a presidential race,” Obama said in a statement Sunday. “That’s the kind of movement that can change the special-interest-driven politics in Washington and transform our country. And it’s just the beginning.”
Meanwhile, Democrat John Edwards raised more than $9 million from April through June and relied on nearly 100,000 donors during the first half of the year.
The fundraising total met the campaign’s stated goal but was about $5 million less than what he took in during the first three months of the year. The campaign has said it is on track to raise $40 million by the Iowa caucuses in January.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson was at Edwards’ heels, with his campaign reporting more than $7 million raised. But Edwards’ six-month total was $23 million, compared with more than $13 million for Richardson.
“Democrats are clearly engaging the public and expanding the donor base,” Edwards deputy campaign manager Jonathan Prince said Sunday in reaction to Obama’s fundraising.
He said the aim of the Edwards campaign was to attract more contributors by holding more small donor events to build a grassroots network.
Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., on Sunday reported raising $3.25 million in the quarter for his presidential campaign, bringing his total raised this year to $7.3 million. Dodd last quarter also transferred $4.7 million from his Senate campaign account. His campaign said he had $6.5 million in cash on hand at the end of the quarter.
The figures that some campaigns released Sunday are estimates. Details of how much the campaigns raised and spent in the latest period will not be available until the candidates file financial reports with the Federal Election Commission by July 15.
While several Democrats revealed their total sums, Republicans were not expected to announce their figures until today or later in the week.
