But Bachmann ranks only 7th in the GOP presidential field in per capita home state fundraising

michelebachmann08.jpgWith her campaign as the outsider to the GOP establishment taking a back seat, at least for the moment, to Herman Cain and Ron Paul, the one thing that might sustain Michele Bachmann’s presidential campaign in the coming months and give her a boost from her distant sixth-in-the-field poll standing is her ability to raise money.

Bachmann’s strength as a fundraiser during her surge in visibility and popularity as a Tea Party leader in the House over the last few years has been her talent for collecting substantial funds from small donors – individuals contributing less than $200 for the cycle.

Toward that end, it is interesting to note that the two White House hopefuls who have raised the most money from small donors are the field’s two U.S. Representatives – Paul ($6.07 million) and Bachmann ($3.89 million).

But running a presidential campaign is obviously a much more expensive endeavor than running for the U.S. House, and large donor money is a crucial component to keeping the lights on.

For her part, Bachmann has seen large donor individual contributions in Minnesota increase 49.2 percent from the same period two years ago when running for the U.S. House.

A Smart Politics review of Bachmann’s FEC filings shows that she received $164,839 in large donor money from Minnesota residents during the 110-day period from the announcement of her candidacy on June 13th to the end of the third quarter on September 30th.

During the same 110-day stretch in 2009 she raised more than $54,000 less from Minnesotans at $110,420.

Meanwhile, Bachmann’s out of state fundraising has soared by $1.5 million during these 3+ months from $69,801 in 2009 to $1,618,950 (+2,219 percent).

That’s the good news.

The bad news for Bachmann is that she has one of the thinnest levels of home state large donor support per capita in the Republican field.

Rick Perry leads the way with $386 raised per 1,000 residents in his home state of Texas – all collected over just the last 49 days of the third quarter.

Mitt Romney is next at $322 raised per 1,000 residents in Massachusetts.

Tim Pawlenty – who ceased campaigning for the GOP nomination more than a month and a half before the end of the third quarter – has still raised $198 per 1,000 residents in Minnesota – more than six times the rate of Bachmann.

Next comes Jon Huntsman at $92 collected per 1,000 residents in Utah, followed by Herman Cain of Georgia at $40, Newt Gingrich of Georgia at $36, and finally Bachmann in seventh at just $31.08 per 1,000 residents in the Gopher State.

Bachmann is only slightly ahead of Ron Paul of Texas ($30.98), Gary Johnson of New Mexico ($29.28), and Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania ($26.76) for per capita home state large donor support.

And while Bachmann’s presidential campaign is the third shortest in the field in terms of the numbers of days since announcing her candidacy, it is worth noting that the candidates with the shortest (Perry) and second shortest (Huntsman) days on the campaign trail rank #1 and #4 respectively in per capita home state large donor contributions.

Per Capita Home State Itemized Individual Contributions to Republican Presidential Candidates Through Q3 2011

Rank
Candidate
State
Raised
Population
Per 1,000
1
Rick Perry
TX
$9,715,510
25,145,561
$386.37
2
Mitt Romney
MA
$2,109,367
6,547,629
$322.16
3
Tim Pawlenty*
MN
$1,051,023
5,303,925
$198.16
4
Jon Huntsman
UT
$256,210
2,763,885
$92.70
5
Herman Cain
GA
$396,131
9,687,653
$40.89
6
Newt Gingrich
GA
$353,822
9,687,653
$36.52
7
Michele Bachmann
MN
$164,839
5,303,925
$31.08
8
Ron Paul
TX
$778,991
25,145,561
$30.98
9
Gary Johnson
NM
$60,300
2,059,179
$29.28
10
Rick Santorum
PA
$339,883
12,702,379
$26.76

* Dropped out of the race on August 14, 2011. Table compiled by Smart Politics with FEC data.

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Posted in Campaign finances, Minnesota, National Politics, Presidency

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