Led by Romney, early Republican fund-raising outpaces Obama's in New York
Mitt Romney campaigns. Reid Pillifant
10:24 am Feb. 9, 2012
According to end-of-the-year reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, Republican candidates have raised just over $9 million in New York this cycle, outpacing the $8.3 million President Obama raised.
The Republican figure combines all the party's candidates, and the high total relative to Obama's reflects early interest in the crowded Republican primary. That dynamic will be drastically different as the campaign moves toward a one-on-one general-election match-up.
Still, the early Republican edge underscores the extent to which Republicans, and particularly Mitt Romney, have made in-roads among donors in New York, particularly among donors who work in the finance industry.
During the 2008 campaign, the Democratic candidates collected $102 million in New York for the presidential race, compared to just $29 million for Republicans. Obama enjoyed a massive advantage over the eventual Republican nominee John McCain here, raising nearly $60 million to McCain's $13 million.
As of Dec. 31, according to the filings, Romney had raised the vast majority of the total amount collected here by Republican candidates, bringing in $6.8 million—or $6 million more than Texas congressman Ron Paul, who is second, with just over half a million. (Ex-candidates Rick Perry and Jon Huntsman are third and fourth, respectively, having collected more in the state than either Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich.)
In Manhattan, Romney has raised $3.7 million, compared to $4.7 million for Obama. In 2008, Obama swamped McCain in Manhattan—$32 million to $5.6 million.
Unlike the other Republican candidates, Romney has made an aggressive, sustained push in the city, hosting massive fund-raisers on several New York swings over the past few months.
Obama has been here too, and the Obama campaign has been collecting for both the (nonexistent) primary election and the general election. Romney's campaign has only been soliciting for the primary election, which means most of his big donors are still eligible to give another $2,500 contribution when the campaign starts collecting for the general election.
