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2012 Money Race: Battling For The Bottom Line

Fundraising reports for September show a massive spending and fundraising push by both the campaigns of President Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney as the race enters its final phase.

  • Q3 2011
  • 2011
  • Jan.
  • Feb.
  • March
  • April
  • May
  • June
  • July
  • Aug.
  • Sept.

October 24, 2012

Fundraising reports for September show a massive spending and fundraising push by both the campaigns of President Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney as the race enters its final phase.

Candidate Contributions* On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $96,355,846 $99,284,701 $115,553,582 $2,637,366
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $15,252,872 $7,291,571 $12,794,294 $0
Democratic National Committee Full Report » $3,735,207 $4,600,406 $22,804,489 $20,486,117
Obama Victory Fund 2012 Joint Obama-DNC Committee | Full Report » $79,968,518 $45,214,993 $21,530,894 $4,271,604
Swing State Victory Fund Full Report » $944,906 $711,272 $22,895 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $41,978,849 $63,148,017 $65,019,626 $5,000,000
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $14,837,309 $16,567,094 $4,567,415 $0
Republican National Committee Full Report » $19,191,253 $82,555,860 $42,401,180 $9,900,000
Romney Victory* Full Report » $106,592,927 $37,399,799 $23,092,423 $0

Note

— "Contributions" includes donations from individuals, political committees and candidates themselves. It does not include transfers, loans, offsets and other figures that factor into the campaign's total receipts for a given reporting period.
— The Romney Victory fund files on a quarterly basis (rather than monthly). Figures shown are for September.

September 21, 2012

Fundraising reports for August paint a complicated picture of the massive amounts of money that will help define the presidential race between now and Nov. 6. President Obama's campaign vastly outraised Mitt Romney's campaign for the month, outspent the Republican nominee and had more cash on hand. But when you include the party committees and related funds and superPACs, Romney had some important advantages as well.

Candidate Contributions* On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $70,730,123 $88,777,412 $83,729,126 $2,922,211
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $10,133,403 $4,832,993 $9,526,273 $0
Democratic National Committee Full Report » $4,702,783 $7,136,856 $21,935,433 11,792,147
Obama Victory Fund 2012 Joint Obama-DNC Committee | Full Report » $39,505,007 $26,064,340 $20,349,209 $5,444,417
Swing State Victory Fund Full Report » $60,250 $3,182,930 $28,188 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $26,915,522 $50,434,404 $66,360,985 $15,000,000
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $7,012,826 $6,297,200 $21,183,132 $0
Republican National Committee Full Report » $17,259,487 $76,569,658 $47,817,883 $0
Romney Victory* Full Report » $67,424,992 $41,495,938 $14,821,131 $0

Note

— "Contributions" includes donations from individuals, political committees and candidates themselves. It does not include transfers, loans, offsets and other figures that factor into the campaign's total receipts for a given reporting period.
— The Romney Victory fund files on a quarterly basis (rather than monthly). Figures shown are estimates.

August 21, 2012

Republican Mitt Romney in July widened his cash advantage over President Obama. But the numbers reported to the Federal Election Commission paint a more complex picture of the race and the vast amounts of money fueling the campaign. The Obama campaign committee reported raising about $39 million, almost $11 million more than the Romney campaign committee. But when you add in the rest of each candidate's organization — the national party and joint fundraising committees — Romney easily outran Obama.

Candidate Contributions* On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $39,366,276 $87,747,678 $58,956,970 $2,832,414
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $4,765,902 $4,225,863 $3,319,725 $0
Democratic National Committee Full Report » $5,911,038 $15,435,667 $31,998,656 $4,571,244
Obama Victory Fund 2012 Joint Obama-DNC Committee | Full Report » $30,418,128 $20,595,849 $5,973,874 $6,014,937
Swing State Victory Fund Full Report » $208,300 $3,150,867 $34,732 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $28,642,441 $30,181,373 $32,653,870 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $7,453,203 $20,467,507 $8,195,653 $0
Republican National Committee Full Report » $12,379,535 $88,752,565 $38,567,226 $9,900,000
Romney Victory* Full Report » $60,278,024 $66,966,062 $14,778,904 $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $52,100 $2,497,183 $396,050 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $83,495 $-56,888 $137,385 $0

Note

— "Contributions" includes donations from individuals, political committees and candidates themselves. It does not include transfers, loans, offsets and other figures that factor into the campaign's total receipts for a given reporting period.
— The Romney Victory fund files on a quarterly basis (rather than monthly). Figures shown are estimates.

July 23, 2012

The money kept pouring in for Mitt Romney, President Obama and their related funds in June. The biggest hauls were by the joint candidate-party "victory" funds. The Romney Victory fund raised an estimated $69.5 million; the Obama Victory fund raised $36 million. The Romney Victory numbers are June-only estimates, because that particular fund files quarterly. The Obama campaign itself outraised Romney for the month, $28 million to $24 million.

Candidate Contributions* On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $28,099,891 $97,536,739 $58,092,066 $2,388,104
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $5,658,134 $2,779,606 $7,886,953 $38,885
Democratic National Committee Full Report » $6,939,749 $37,489,672 $12,714,349 $5,366,861
Obama Victory Fund 2012 Joint Obama-DNC Committee | Full Report » $36,063,515 $8,983,935 $31,732,735 $147,065
Swing State Victory Fund Full Report » $40,060 $2,977,299 $743 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $24,002,428 $22,505,830 $27,538,609 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $20,728,313 $21,552,803 $7,576,267 $0
Republican National Committee Full Report » $11,904,230 $89,426,319 $11,230,483 $9,900,000
Romney Victory* Full Report » $69,500,000 $57,746,910 $49,500,000 $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $39,152 $2,838,928 $488,062 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $150 $-2,999 $96 $0

Note

— "Contributions" includes donations from individuals, political committees and candidates themselves. It does not include transfers, loans, offsets and other figures that factor into the campaign's total receipts for a given reporting period.
— The Romney Victory fund files on a quarterly basis (rather than monthly). Numbers shown are estimates for June only.

June 21, 2012

President Obama's campaign raised nearly $30 million in contributions last month, but it spent more than it brought in — shelling out more than $44 million. Meanwhile, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign raised $16 million in contributions and spent just a little less than that, $15.6 million.

Candidate Contributions* On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $29,649,061 $109,718,115 $44,582,173 $1,207,807
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $4,002,284 $4,510,411 $4,231,386 $0
Democratic National Committee Full Report » $6,391,238 $29,656,169 $14,611,168 $3,270,400
Obama Victory Fund 2012 Joint Obama-DNC Committee | Full Report » $24,438,738 $4,554,740 $24,783,214 $503,488
Swing State Victory Fund Full Report » $119,000 $2,937,982 $25,448 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $16,002,051 $16,999,666 $15,629,510 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $4,960,025 $8,400,757 $4,769,013 $0
Republican National Committee Full Report » $8,006,575 $60,827,864 $40,491,037 $9,900,000
Romney Victory* Full Report » $52,800,000 $19,700,000 $33,100,000 $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $1,785,576 $3,281,384 $969,622 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $458 -$3,053 $5,368 $0

Note

— "Contributions" includes donations from individuals, political committees and candidates themselves. It does not include transfers, loans, offsets and other figures that factor into the campaign's total receipts for a given reporting period.
— The Romney Victory fund files on a quarterly basis (rather than monthly). Numbers shown are estimates for May only.

May 21, 2012

President Obama's re-election campaign raised about $21 million in April, while presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney raised nearly $12 million. But the Republican National Committee vastly outraised the Democratic National Committee for the month, which will help Romney offset the difference. The Obama and Romney campaigns are in joint fundraising partnerships with their respective party committees, and can tap into those funds.

Candidate Contributions* On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $21,177,042* $115,157,433 $14,644,620 $1,200
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $1,583,134 $4,739,513 $1,877,010 $0
Democratic National Committee Full Report » $6,697,646 $24,284,707 $14,539,075 $3,925,070
Obama Victory Fund 2012 Joint Obama-DNC Committee | Full Report » $15,811,007 $4,860,471 $14,696,224 $0
Swing State Victory Fund Full Report » $56,800 $2,844,430 $1,939 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $11,449,245 $9,211,335 $12,572,102 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $4,607,662 $8,209,745 $2,852,123 $0
Republican National Committee Full Report » $11,438,456 $34,797,272 $9,384,708 $9,900,000
Romney Victory* Full Report » $18,000,000 $18,000,000 $0 $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $2,044,957 $2,464,997 $1,365,722 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $2,168 $1,827 $54,325 $0
Rick Santorum (R) Full Report » $1,242,029 $1,007,322 $2,047,157 $2,275,458
SuperPAC: Red White & Blue Fund Supports: Santorum | Full Report » $120,042 $323,814 $59,177 $0
Newt Gingrich (R) Full Report » $638,831 $806,951 $1,206,835 $4,777,006
SuperPAC: Winning Our Future Supports: Gingrich | Full Report » $683 $5,629,899 $132,702 $0

Notes

— "Contributions" includes donations from individuals, political committees and candidates themselves. It does not include transfers, loans, offsets and other figures that factor into the campaign's total receipts for a given reporting period.
— Obama fundraising numbers do not include a $4.5 million transfer from the Obama Victory Fund 2012, jointly run by the Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee.
— The Romney Victory fund files on a quarterly basis (rather than monthly). Numbers shown are estimates for April only.
— Santorum suspended his campaign on April 10, 2012.
— Gingrich suspended his campaign on May 2, 2012.

April 20, 2012

Rick Santorum said a lack of funds helped to force him from the Republican presidential contest on April 10, and Federal Election Commission filings show his campaign nearly $2 million in debt by the end of March. Presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney raised more than the previous month, but trailed way behind President Obama's campaign. The pro-Romney superPAC, however, outraised the pro-Obama superPAC by more than three-to-one in March.

Candidate Raised On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $35,080,297 $104,096,194 $15,657,566 $305,168
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $2,505,947 $5,033,389 $318,254 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $13,062,261 $10,059,748 $10,275,865 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $8,684,410 $6,454,206 $12,722,782 $0
Rick Santorum (R) Full Report » $5,045,101 $1,804,101 $5,839,305 $1,989,929
SuperPAC: Red White & Blue Fund Supports: Santorum | Full Report » $2,581,445 $262,949 $2,683,078 $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $2,631,522 $1,780,774 $2,218,234 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $13,104 $53,984 $114,395 $0
Newt Gingrich (R) Full Report » $1,694,909 $1,227,003 $2,010,937 $4,300,053
SuperPAC: Winning Our Future Supports: Gingrich | Full Report » $5,051,083 $5,761,917 $1,549,882 $0

Notes

— Santorum suspended his campaign on April 10, 2012.

March 20, 2012

Just as in January, Mitt Romney and the superPAC supporting him outspent the rest of the GOP field combined in February, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Romney and the Restore Our Future superPAC spent more than $24 million. Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul and the superPACs supporting them spent $23.4 million.

Interactive Graph: Day-to-day February fundraising

Candidate Raised On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $21,312,005 $84,674,461 $12,590,672 $30,058
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $2,029,793 $2,845,696 $502,708 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $11,958,249 $7,273,352 $12,362,526 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $6,423,360 $10,492,578 $12,232,044 $0
Rick Santorum (R) Full Report » $9,000,650 $2,598,305 $7,876,409 $922,448
SuperPAC: Red White & Blue Fund Supports: Santorum | Full Report » $2,947,059 $364,582 $3,209,085 $28,087
Newt Gingrich (R) Full Report » $2,629,064 $1,543,032 $2,874,622 $1,550,517
SuperPAC: Winning Our Future Supports: Gingrich | Full Report » $5,741,391 $2,283,216 $5,758,595 $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $3,271,370 $1,367,486 $3,548,698 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $282,467 $206,778 $135,870 $0

February 21, 2012

Mitt Romney's campaign and superPAC combined spent nearly $33 million in January, more than twice what Newt Gingrich and his superPAC spent — and more than six times what Rick Santorum and his superPAC spent. But Santorum raised $4.5 million for the month — more than twice his total 2011 haul.

Interactive Graph: Day-to-day January fundraising

Candidate Raised On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $11,865,906 $75,953,128 $17,673,790 $1,056,688
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $58,816 $1,318,612 $258,026 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $6,537,997 $7,677,629 $18,776,494 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $6,617,550 $16,301,262 $13,938,398 $0
Newt Gingrich (R) Full Report » $5,587,176 $1,788,590 $5,907,417 $1,726,085
SuperPAC: Winning Our Future Supports: Gingrich | Full Report » $11,027,627 $2,441,350 $9,762,779 $0
Rick Santorum (R) Full Report » $4,513,487 $1,474,064 $3,318,357 $956,701
SuperPAC: Red White & Blue Fund Supports: Santorum | Full Report » $2,087,740 $626,607 $1,539,247 $900
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $4,481,209 $1,644,815 $5,233,011 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $2,376,942 $60,181 $2,944,592 $0
Jon Huntsman* (R) Full Report » $450,776 $870 $560,871 $5,176,723
SuperPAC: Our Destiny PAC Supports: Huntsman | Full Report » $485,685 $845 $611,426 $0
Rick Perry* (R) Full Report » $388,531 $860,168 $3,290,249 $0
SuperPAC: Make Us Great Again Supports: Perry | Full Report »
Michele Bachmann* (R) Full Report »

Notes

— Bachmann, Huntsman and Perry suspended their campaigns in January 2012.
— Neither Bachmann nor the Make Us Great Again superPAC (supporting Perry) submitted a fundraising report for January 2012.

October 16, 2011

The former governor of Massachusetts and current governor of Texas led other Republican presidential primary candidates in fundraising this summer, and on Sept. 30 they had substantially more cash than the rest. Still, President Obama, as an incumbent with no Democratic primary challengers, had $61.4 million on hand, compared with $37.2 million for the entire GOP field. The candidates reported these third-quarter totals, covering July, August and September.

Interactive Graph: Weekly third-quarter fundraising totals

Candidate Raised On hand Spent Debt owed
Barack Obama* (D) Full Report » $42,090,011 $61,403,711 $17,790,314 ($193,373/day) $1,709,300
Rick Perry* (R) Full Report » $17,200,232 $15,078,415 $2,121,817 ($43,302/day) $339,120
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $14,222,571 $14,656,966 $12,281,100 ($133,490/day) $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $8,268,500 $3,674,768 $7,559,909 ($82,173/day) $0
Jon Huntsman (R) Full Report » $4,514,189 $327,615 $4,186,574 ($45,506/day) $3,145,594
Michele Bachmann* (R) Full Report » $4,107,395 $1,545,772 $6,206,328 ($67,460/day) $549,604
Herman Cain (R) Full Report » $2,813,342 $1,333,779 $1,967,152 ($21,382/day) $675,000
Newt Gingrich (R) Full Report » $807,962 $353,417 $776,768 ($8,443/day) $1,192,866
Rick Santorum (R) Full Report » $704,199 $189,557 $743,757 ($8,084/day) $71,866

Note

— Obama also has raised $27.3 million for the Democratic National Committee.
— Perry was an active candidate for 49 days of this reporting period.
— Bachmann has two committees that filed disclosure reports: her presidential campaign and another for online fundraising which predates the presidential campaign.

February 1, 2012

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney led the Republican field in fundraising in 2011 — raising more than $57 million — but he was outpaced by President Obama, who pulled in almost $140 million. Filings at the end of 2011 also gave the first real insight into the finances of superPACs — a new breed of political action committee that can raise unregulated money.

Interactive Graph: Weekly fourth-quarter fundraising totals

Candidate Total raised (2011) On hand Total spent (2011) Debt owed
Barack Obama (D) Full Report » $139,526,311 $81,761,012 $126,448,915 $3,035,737
SuperPAC: Priorities USA Action Supports: Obama | Full Report » $4,400,616 $1,517,821 $2,882,794 $0
Mitt Romney (R) Full Report » $57,112,767 $19,916,126 $37,209,679 $0
SuperPAC: Restore Our Future Supports: Romney | Full Report » $17,947,953 $23,622,110 $6,535,214 $0
Ron Paul (R) Full Report » $26,104,721 $1,904,915 $24,199,806 $0
SuperPAC: Endorse Liberty Supports: Paul | Full Report » $1,020,055 $627,830 $392,225 $0
Rick Perry* (R) Full Report » $20,109,798 $3,761,886 $16,347,912 $93,745
SuperPAC: Make Us Great Again Supports: Perry | Full Report » $5,485,885 $604,472 $4,881,413 $0
Herman Cain* (R) Full Report » $16,861,687 $986,430 $15,875,256 $580,200
SuperPAC: 9-9-9 Fund Supports: Cain | Full Report » $617,620 $203,528 $414,093 $184,525
Newt Gingrich (R) Full Report » $12,733,254 $2,108,831 $10,624,423 $1,199,361
SuperPAC: Winning Our Future Supports: Gingrich | Full Report » $2,087,171 $1,176,503 $910,668 $0
Michele Bachmann* (R) Full Report » $10,213,213 $608,884 $11,904,546 $1,055,924
Jon Huntsman* (R) Full Report » $5,918,425 $110,965 $5,807,460 $3,775,253
SuperPAC: Our Destiny PAC Supports: Huntsman | Full Report » $2,680,560 $126,587 $2,553,973 $0
Rick Santorum (R) Full Report » $2,184,953 $278,935 $1,906,019 $204,836
SuperPAC: Red White & Blue Fund Supports: Santorum | Full Report » $729,935 $78,114 $651,821 $0

Note

— Cain suspended his campaign in December 2011. Bachmann, Huntsman and Perry suspended their campaigns in January 2012.
— Bachmann has two committees that filed disclosure reports: her presidential campaign and another for online fundraising which predates the presidential campaign.

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