File: Eric Tadsen
Sen. Bernie Sanders
In the nearly 33,000-page fundraising report Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) submitted to the Federal Elections Commission late Thursday, one figure stands out above all: Of the 650,000 people who have donated to his presidential campaign, only 270 of them have given the maximum-allowed $2,700.
That means that if the rest of his low-dollar donors keep feelin' the Bern, Sanders should have plenty of cash to burn in the months ahead.
"Other campaigns are bankrolled by big donors who have given so much, even under our current corrupt political system, they can’t legally give any more," Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver said in a statement. "Bernie’s big base of small donors may give again and again. What is clear now is that this campaign to transform America will have the resources to fight all the way to the convention."
In the quarter ending September 30, Sanders reported raising $26.2 million, not far behind the $29.9 million former secretary of state Hillary Clinton raised. Sanders, who has not yet aired any television advertisements, spent far less than his chief rival for the Democratic nomination: $11.2 million, compared to her $25.7 million.
So even though Clinton vastly out-raised Sanders in the opening months of the presidential race, they now have a similar amount of money in the bank: He's got $27.1 million, while she's got $33 million.
Since Sanders joined the race in May, he has received 1.3 million donations, his campaign said. More than 77 percent of them, or $30.7 million, came from those who gave $200 or less.
"What is really remarkable is the breadth of support for Bernie from so many people responding to his call for a political revolution to stand up for the middle class and take on the billionaire class," Weaver said.
Thursday's FEC filing covered only the third quarter of the year. According to his campaign, he has collected 97,800 donations since Tuesday night's debate in Las Vegas, totaling $3.2 million. On Wednesday, he drew 1,100 people to
a small-dollar fundraiser at the Avalon nightclub in Hollywood, co-hosted by Seth MacFarlane, and appeared at another, more exclusive fundraiser later that evening in Beverly Hills.
Sanders' FEC report shows he spent:
- More than $3 million on "campaign paraphernalia" (presumably lawn signs, t-shirts, and stickers), much of which went to Ohio-based Tigereye Design and Texas-based DemSign
- $2.5 million on digital consulting and online advertising, all of which went to Washington, D.C.-based Revolution Messaging
- $944,000 on payroll
- $786,000 on event site rental, management, sound, lighting and supplies, including $55,000 for the Moda Center in Portland, Ore.; $38,000 for the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum; and $35,000 for the Boston Convention Center
- $784,000 on merchant fees to Act Blue and Stripe, both of which process campaign donations for the campaign
- $484,000 on postage and shipping
- $251,000 on rent
- $195,000 on voter list rental from the Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina Democratic parties
- $191,000 on airfare; $133,000 on hotels; $70,000 on rental cars and gas; $38,000 on travel reimbursement