Bernie Sanders Campaign Raises over $26 Million in Third Quarter

The reporting deadline is October 15, but Democrats Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton have already released big numbers for third quarter campaign donations.

The numbers tell election pundits something about what the state of this election is from the Democratic side.

The insurgent campaign of Sanders raised over $26 million during the quarter from July through September, with $2 million coming on just the last day of the quarter, according to a spokesperson for the Sanders campaign.

Nearly all of it was donations of small dollar amounts from more than 650,000 donors, with some giving on multiple occasions, since Sanders began his campaign.

This is a very big increase from the total for fundraising during the previous quarter and reflects a summer with large crowds and surging numbers in the polls.

Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign took in over $28 million during the third quarter. A campaign aide told reporters that 93% of the donations received during the quarter were for $100 or less.

The Clinton campaign said it was grateful and thrilled for all the support from hundreds of thousands of U.S. donors helping the campaign raise a record of $75 million during the first six months of the campaign.

A spokesperson added that thanks to the supporters the campaign could meet its goals and build an organization that is able to mobilize the millions of voters who want Hillary Clinton in our White House.

Although the Clinton campaign touts small donors, it also held many big dollar fundraisers often a number in the same day.

Clinton held one on Wednesday night as minutes ticked away for the quarter end. Held in New York at the famous 40/40 Club, there were 130 people attending that donated $1,000 to $2,700 each.

Only a few fundraisers were held by Sanders campaign and supporters were allowed to attend with just a donation of $50.

In the previous quarter, Clinton’s campaign held a much wider gap over other campaigns, but that is narrowing now.