Clinton Sets New Fundraising Records

Clinton Staff Reports Highest First Quarter Fundraising

By Jerry Garner

Although results from the first quarter of campaign fundraising are not due yet, some campaigns are already reporting their results, and the Clinton campaign appears to be breaking new ground. The Clinton campaign is reporting record shattering fundraising activities for the first quarter. If the results are indicative of the Presidential race to come, this will prove to be a very exciting and expensive campaign.

Fundraising results for the first quarter, which ended March 31, must be reported to the Federal Election Committee no later than April 15th. However, some campaign headquarters are reporting their results early as a show of strength. With the amount of money being raised, the Democratic primary elections looks to be a highly competitive race that will likely consist of record spending.

Clinton’s campaign is leading the pack in terms of fundraising receipts. The Senator’s bid for the Democratic nomination has reported a record breaking $26 Million in donations to her campaign during the first quarter. Clinton has also transferred over $10 Million left over from her Senate Campaign, giving her a total of $36 Million for the first quarter fundraising efforts.

Ex-Senator John Edwards comes in a close second with $14 Million raised for his campaign. This is double the amount raised for the same period during his 2004 bid for the Presidency. By comparison, John Kerry had boasted fundraising receipts of just over $10 Million during his run in the primaries.

The world now has their eye on Senator Barack Obama, who is the only Democratic candidate to not report their fundraising results early. It seems the world will have to wait until after the April 15th deadline to know just how much money the Obama campaign has raised, but the Presidential hopeful remained confident during recent press conferences.

"I think we'll do well," Obama said. "I think that we should meet people's expectations. More importantly, I think we will have raised enough money to make sure we can compete for the next quarter and beyond. I think we'll do pretty well."

Early reports hint that the Obama campaign has taken donations from 83,000 people. The Clinton campaign reported that over 50,000 people from all 50 states contributed to Senator Clinton’s campaign, with 80 percent of donations being less than $100 each.

Senator Clinton has repeatedly expressed gratitude at the grass roots efforts that have propelled her campaign forward. Clinton’s campaign boasted over $4.2 Million in campaign contributions that came through the internet, and another $1.8 million that were the results of volunteer telemarketing efforts.

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