While Barack Obama had ten times as much in the bank as Mitt Romney did at the end of March, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate outraised the Democrat incumbent in May as the money chase -- like the presidential race in general -- continues to heat up.
On Thursday, the two major parties and their presidential candidates unveiled what they raised in May -- and Romney and the Republicans did better than Obama and the Democrats in the month.
The Romney team and the Republican National Committee (RNC) announced that they had raised almost $77 million in May and had $107 million in the bank. The Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) revealed that they had brought in more than $60 million in May but did not announce how much they had on hand.
We are encouraged by the financial support from a broad range of voters, said Spencer Zwick, Romneys finance chairman, on Thursday. To them, whether they are Republican, Democrat, independent, a first-time political donor, or a former Obama donor, this is not just a campaign, it's an opportunity for the country. It is clear that people aren't willing to buy into hope and change again. Voters are making an investment because they believe that it will benefit the country.
Our strong fundraising is a sign that Americans are tired of President Obamas broken promises and want a change of direction in the White House, said RNC Chairman Reince Priebus. We will continue the hard work of raising the resources to defeat President Obama so that we can elect Mitt Romney and Republicans up and down the ballot to get our country on the right track again.
Small donors made up the bulk of the Romney contributors with 93 percent of them giving $250 or less to the former Massachusetts governor -- but the other 7 percent provided the bulk of Romneys haul in May, giving $65 million.
The Obama camp also relied on small donors, with 98 percent of the contributors giving $250 or less to the Democrat incumbent.
This campaign reached a milestone in May, insisted Mary Hough from the Obama campaign. More than 2.2 million people stepped up to own a piece of it. Its a testament to the grassroots strength of this organization -- and a contrast to the special-interest money the Romney campaign is relying on for its support.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
