Edwards Raised $14M for Pres. Race in Q1
by Josh Gerstein
Sun, 1 Apr 2007 at 5:06 PM
updated Sun, 1 Apr 2007 at 5:08 PM
A former senator from North Carolina, John Edwards, raised more than $14 million for his presidential campaign in the first quarter of 2007, according to campaign staffers speaking on a conference call this afternoon.
That's nearly double the $7.4 million Mr. Edwards raised at this point in his 2004 bid.
The tally is likely to place Mr. Edwards in third place among Democratic contenders for the White House, but the former senator's aides said they are happy with the showing. "We're completely on track to have all the money that we need to be highly competitive in the campaign," the deputy campaign manager, Jonathan Prince, said.
Mr. Prince said about $1 million of the $14 million was raised towards the general election, meaning it came from donors who already gave the maximum $2,300 donation for the more urgent primary race.
Asked if he was concerned that Senator Clinton managed to raise substantially more, Mr. Prince said, "Not at all....History has clearly indicated that the most money is not the key to the nomination."
Political insiders are also keeping an eye on how fast campaigns burn through their money. The Edwards aides wouldn't discuss cash-on-hand figures today, but the bid's thriftiness was on clear display. The Chapel Hill, N.C.-based operation used a free conference call service, which made it impossible to disconnect some imbecile who hooked the call to a line with a ringing sound which interrupted staffers and reporters alike as it continued annoyingly throughout the 20-minute call.
It looks like Senator Obama's campaign will not release its figures today, but a person in that camp tells me that the Illinois senator appears to have raised a sum similar to that brought in by Mrs. Clinton for her primary campaign. The Clinton campaign has not publicly broken down the $26 million she raised into primary and general. Assuming that 80% of Mrs. Clinton's money was for the primary, Mr. Obama could come close to matching her and might even beat her.
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