Democrat Hillary
Rodham Clinton has pulled ahead of rival Barack Obama at
the bank as well as in the polls, and both continue to crush
Republicans in the money race.
Clinton holds
nearly $35 million three months before the voting starts,
to Obama's $32 million.
The Republican
money leader, Rudy Giuliani, reported $11.6 million in the
bank for the primaries.
Clinton, who had
trailed Obama in fund-raising and in money in the bank
at the end of June, edged past him with an aggressive third
quarter of fund-raising.
The New York
senator, who also has been raising money for the general
election, had a total of $50.5 million in the bank, her
campaign reported. But nearly $16 million of that
cannot be used for the primaries.
She reported
raising $23.7 million for the primary and had operating
expenses of $21.3 million. Obama spent a nearly identical
amount, but he raised $19.3 million in the quarter.
They each reported debts -- Clinton owed $2.3 million
and Obama owed $1.4 million.
Democrat John
Edwards reported $12.4 million in the bank after raising
nearly $7.2 million and spending almost $8.3 million during
the quarter. New Mexico governor Bill Richardson,
trying to establish himself among the Democratic
leaders, reported $5.8 million in the bank. He raised $5.3
million in the quarter and spent $6.6 million.
Among
Republicans, Mitt Romney spent $21 million during the third
quarter, more than twice what he raised during the period
and more than what he spent in previous quarters,
according to his Federal Election Commission report.
John McCain,
enjoying something of a resurgence in the polls after a
dismal second quarter, reported more than $1.6 million cash
on hand for the primaries and more than $1.7 million
in debts, putting his campaign in the red. McCain has
an extra $1.8 million in the bank that can only be
used if he wins the Republican nomination.
McCain's
financial condition may force him to accept public financing
for his campaign, providing an infusion of cash but
limiting how much he can spend. McCain's report
detailed how his primary spending has been allocated
by state, an indication that he is prepared to accept
matching federal money.
Romney, a former
Massachusetts governor and venture capitalist, has been
tapping his personal wealth to supplement money from
contributors. He raised $9.8 million and lent his
campaign $8.5 million over the summer.
Giuliani reported
spending $13 million during the same period, compared
to the $10.2 million he raised for the primary campaign.
Giuliani also raised about $1.3 million to spend on
the general election if he wins the nomination.
Fred Thompson,
who didn't officially enter the race until early
September, reported spending $5.4 million during the
quarter, more than half of it last month.
Thompson, whose
report covers fund-raising and spending since June, when
he began exploring a presidential bid, raised $12.8 million
during that four month-period. He reported $7.1
million in the bank at the end of September, as well
as $678,000 in debts.
Romney reported
$9.2 million cash in hand, thanks in large part to the
$17.5 million he has funneled into his campaign since the
beginning of the year. He has raised $45 million since
January, but leads all Republican candidates with
$52.8 million in spending for the year.
In the Republican
surprise of the quarter, long-shot candidate Ron Paul
capitalized on his antiwar stance and Internet following to
amass $5.2 million in contributions. He reported $5.4
million cash on hand at the end of September.
As a group
Romney, Giuliani, and Thompson enter the final stretch
before the first nominating contests with money to
spend on get-out-the-vote and advertising campaigns.
Giuliani led the
Republican field in fund-raising this summer, according
to early estimates provided by the campaigns, though his
July-September total fell from his high during
April-June. It was the first time Giuliani's campaign
spent more than it raised during a quarter.
Thompson, the
former Tennessee senator and actor on NBC's Law &
Order, raised $9.3 million of his $12.8 million total
during July-September.
Among Democrats,
Clinton used the third quarter to secure her place as a
national front-runner. She has recently hit 50% support
among Democrats in national polls, though the race is
closer in Iowa, where she holds a small lead in a
cluster with Obama and Edwards.
Her biggest
expenditure for the quarter was $4 million for salaries
followed by $2.2 million for travel. Her advertising
expenses, which are beginning to increase, were $1.7
million.
Clinton also
refunded $1.2 million to donors, including more than
$800,000 to donors linked to disgraced Democratic
fund-raiser Norman Hsu.
Obama had a $3.8
million payroll for the quarter and spent $2.3 million
on travel.
Giuliani is the
Republican front-runner nationally, but he lags behind
Romney in the leadoff caucus state of Iowa. In New
Hampshire, another important early voting state, polls
show the race a virtual toss-up among Giuliani,
Romney, and John McCain. Thompson also is competitive with
the top tier in state and national polls.
According to
Giuliani's report, the campaign spent more than $2 million
on payroll and $1.3 million on travel from July through
September, about as much as it had during the first
six months of the year.
His campaign
increased advertising this quarter, spending nearly $470,000
on radio and newspapers, including a full-page ad in The
New York Times last month that criticized
Clinton, the Democratic front-runner. Giuliani leads all
candidates in radio advertising with more than 640
spots in several states, according to the Nielsen
television ratings company.
Romney has spent
much more on television, but radio is cheaper and can be
targeted to specific audiences.
Romney spent
nearly $6 million on television and radio commercials,
bringing his total ad spending for the year to a whopping
$12.7 million. So far, Romney has placed the most
political ads on the air than any candidate, Democrat
or Republican. The Nielsen Co., which also monitors
advertising, reported Monday that Romney had placed 10,600
television ads from January 1 to October 10.
Richardson, the Democrat, was second with 5,800
television spots.
Both candidates,
little known outside their states or national political
circles, have used their ads to increase their name
recognition, particularly in Iowa, the state scheduled
to hold the first-in-the-nation caucuses in early
January.
Obama ramped up
his advertising toward the end of third quarter, spending
nearly $3.3 million on media. He has placed more than 4,200
spots on television, practically all of them in Iowa,
according to Nielsen. Clinton has placed nearly 2,200
spots, with more than 1,600 airing in Iowa. According
to Nielsen, Clinton also has placed a small number of ads
in other states, including New York, Tennessee, Louisiana,
and Arizona. (Jim Kuhnhenn, AP)
